ANCHORAGE, Alaska—
The bodies of the two officers killed Saturday during a standoff in the southeast Alaska village of Hoonah were part of a processional Tuesday night in Anchorage. Law enforcement vehicles followed the vehicle carrying Tony Wallace and Matt Tokuoka. The processional started at the state medical examiner’s office and ended at the Evergreen Funeral home.
For residents in Hoonah the deaths are shocking, the pain is still fresh, but they're starting the healing process.
Hoonah is a town that helps you raise your kids. It’s a town where neighbors know your name. Hoonah is a close knit community where people look out for each other and now the people of Hoonah need each other more than ever.
"In a small town it's just like taking a chunk out of yourself really... You've lost something,” said Bob Prunella, Hoonah interim city administrator.
A memorial has been set up to honor the two extraordinary men gunned down Saturday. Wallace and Tokuoka were two of three police officers in town.
Friends say Hoonah was the perfect spot for Wallace and Tokuoka. The two spent hours together fishing. Tokuoka would often take his wife and two young children.
"They used to come out to the creek where I was living and that was pretty exciting catching pinks, and silvers and tony was a pretty enthusiastic fisherman. He was pretty vocal, pretty vocal guy,” said Hoonah resident Elisabeth Stoltzfus.
Troopers say, 45-year-old John Marvin Jr. ambushed Wallace and Tokuoka, shooting them in front of Wallace’s mother and Tokuoka's wife and kids.
“I think the feelings are all over the map, from grief to anger to bewilderment to all the what ifs and the whys,” said Prunella.
The memorial sits where the two officers were shot, just yards away from where the suspect lived. Friends and family say they want that ugliness to be overpowered by their wonderful memories of the officers.
"I've only been here a few months and I've had my share of hugs and support,” said Prunella.
State counselors and chaplains flew in to provide counseling, but they may never provide answers.
It may take months, and years for the pain to fade, but that's not what friends and family want to focus on. They want to remember Tokuoka and Wallace for what they did and gave to the community they loved and that loved them back.
Marvin faces two counts of first degree murder. He was arrested Monday after a nearly two day standoff with authorities. His bail has been set at $1 million.
Contact Jackie Bartz at jbartz@ktuu.com
