Wounded Man Aimed Weapon During Traffic Stop, APD Says

Anchorage police announced charges Tuesday against a man who allegedly aimed a pistol at officers before he was shot and wounded by them during a Downtown traffic stop Sunday evening, in a case which remains under investigation.

At a Tuesday press conference, APD said the incident occurred just after 7 p.m. Sunday on Denali Street, between 11th and 12th avenues, where an officer had stopped a Chevy Blazer with three occupants. Police say a computer check showed an arrest warrant against back-seat passenger Kyle Garett Swann, 22, for failure to appear for a pre-indictment hearing on drug charges,”

“A second officer was called for backup and, upon arrival, both officers approached the vehicle,” police wrote in a Tuesday statement released at the conference. “At this time, Swann produced a handgun and pointed it at officers. The officers then drew their service weapons and fired upon Swann, striking him in the left arm.”

Officials at the press conference say Swann told police that he didn’t want to go back to jail. Six shots were fired during the encounter, five of which investigators have accounted for.

Swann was taken to a local hospital, where he remains after undergoing surgery. He has been arrested on the outstanding warrant as well as four counts of felony assault; upon release from the hospital he will be taken to the Anchorage Jail, with bail set at $40,000 cash.

Blazer driver Garret Graham, 22, and front-seat passenger Christina Morton, 19, were both uninjured and initially taken into custody. Graham has not been charged as of Tuesday afternoon.

APD says the names of the officers who fired on Swann will be released Wednesday.

Contact Mallory Peebles and Chris Klint