Press Release

James Kirk Convicted of First Degree Robbery

April 16, 2018

(ANCHORAGE, Alaska) On April 16, 2018, Superior Court Judge Jack Smith found James Kirk guilty of robbery in the first degree following a one day non-jury trial.

According to the evidence presented in court, Kirk approached a coffee stand in Midtown Anchorage in the early evening of April 28, 2017, where a 21 year old barista was working alone. Kirk, who was wearing a mask, black hat, and sunglasses, told the barista that he was carrying a ".45" pistol and demanded that she turn over the money in the cash register. He threatened to shoot her if she refused to provide the money and began counting down from 10. The frightened barista threw some cash out of the window of the coffee stand, and Kirk gathered it up and fled on foot.

The barista called 911 immediately and provided a detailed description of the event and the suspect. Anchorage Police responded immediately. Patrol officers, familiar with the area, searched for a suspect in a nearby apartment complex. With the assistance of the apartment manager, they were able to obtain footage of Kirk entering one of the apartments and verify that he matched the description of the suspect. The officers obtained a warrant to search the apartment and took Kirk into custody; during the search, they recovered the mask and clothing worn during the robbery.

Assistant District Attorney James Klugman, who prosecuted the case, expressed his appreciation to the officers of the Anchorage Police Department, and the detectives of the Robbery/Assault Unit for their prompt, thorough, and focused investigation.

Kirk will be held without bail pending sentencing, which Judge Smith scheduled for August 21. He faces a presumptive sentencing of three to six years in prison.

CONTACT: Assistant District Attorney James Klugman at (907) 269-6300 or james.klugman@alaska.gov.

More information about the Anchorage District Attorney’s Office is available at http://www.law.alaska.gov/department/criminal/adao.html.

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Department Media Contacts: Communications Director Patty Sullivan at patty.sullivan@alaska.gov or (907) 269-6368. Information Officer Sam Curtis at sam.curtis@alaska.gov or (907) 269-6269.