Man arrested after teen stabbed inside Stebbins home

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - Alaska State Troopers say a 34-year-old man has been charged in connection with a late January stabbing that left a teenager seriously injured in a Western Alaska village.

Troopers announced Wednesday that investigators determined Charles Merculief was responsible for the Jan. 27 stabbing in Stebbins. Merculief has been remanded on charges of first-degree assault, fourth-degree assault, and two counts of furnishing alcohol to a minor in a local option community.

The case stems from a call that came in shortly before 10:45 a.m. on that day, reporting that a 17-year-old had been stabbed. Troopers responded to the scene and found the teen with serious injuries. They were medevacked to Anchorage for treatment.

What the charging documents allege

An affidavit filed in Unalakleet District Court describes a chaotic morning inside a small Stebbins residence where three people had been drinking homebrew, a homemade alcoholic beverage produced through fermentation.

According to court documents, Village Police Officers initially responded to reports of the stabbing and found the 17-year-old victim and 18-year-old Destini Washington both heavily intoxicated.

VPOs reported seeing a visible stab wound to the right side of the victim’s stomach. Both initially told officers that Merculief had committed the stabbing, though the victim later gave conflicting accounts while intoxicated, according to the affidavit.

When troopers arrived in Stebbins around 1:30 p.m., they began interviewing witnesses. A juvenile who lived across the street told investigators he saw a woman in red clothing, later identified as Washington, climb out of a window of Merculief’s residence.

Moments later, the witness said he saw the victim stumble out of the home, yelling “He stabbed me, he stabbed me,” before collapsing near their grandparents’ residence down the street.

Angela Merculief, Washington’s mother, told troopers she and her father responded to the residence after hearing screaming and crying from inside. She said they tried to open the door, but Charles Merculief wouldn’t let them in.

Angela Merculief reported seeing Washington go out through a window, then saw the victim pushed out the front door with blood coming from their abdominal area. The victim told her they had been stabbed by Charles Merculief before running to her grandparents’ home, according to the affidavit.

Both Washington and Merculief were taken into custody on unrelated warrants.

Inside the residence

Troopers executed a search warrant on Merculief’s residence, a single-room accessory dwelling on the same property as his parents’ main house.

Investigators found blood spatter throughout the room, on the bed, floor, and on a sock. The residence smelled strongly of alcohol, and a trashcan in the middle of the room contained a small amount of white liquid consistent with homebrew, according to investigators.

Troopers seized three knives from the residence: two butter knives and one serrated kitchen knife.

Conflicting accounts

When troopers initially arrested Merculief for violating his probation conditions, he refused to be interviewed. However, without being asked, Merculief made unsolicited statements denying that he stabbed the victim, according to investigators.

He claimed the teen was suicidal and said they grabbed a knife and “the next thing he knew was that” they “started bleeding.” He also said Washington and the victim had an argument and that Washington tried grabbing the knife.

Troopers noted a strong odor of alcohol coming from Merculief. He also had injuries to his face and a puncture wound to the top middle area of his left hand, which he told medical staff was from a knife.

Washington told investigators that Merculief, her uncle, had been drinking with her and the victim when he wanted Washington to leave him and the teen alone. Washington said she refused, and that’s when Merculief prevented both of them from leaving by blocking the door and pushing them back when they tried to exit.

Washington told troopers she left through the window because she thought she was going to die.

Washington appeared reluctant to share additional details about the stabbing, stating she didn’t remember because she was too intoxicated, according to charging documents. She told investigators she doesn’t think the victim hurt themselves. Washington also said Merculief had been hurting women he was in relationships with.

The victim told investigators at Alaska Native Medical Center that they were pressured into consuming homebrew and didn’t remember being stabbed. Medical staff reported the teen had internal bleeding but was able to be stabilized.

In a subsequent forensic interview at Alaska Cares, an Anchorage Child Advocacy Center, the victim stated they believed Merculief stabbed them but couldn’t remember clearly because they had blacked out after consuming approximately four cups of homebrew.

Monitored jail calls

Troopers monitored jail calls made by both Washington and Merculief after their arrests. In one call, Merculief asked his father if he had talked to Washington.

According to the affidavit, his father replied that he had and that Washington was not going to say anything. Merculief then told a story to Angela Merculief about the victim cutting themselves.

In separate calls, Washington told family members that troopers thought she might have stabbed the victim but that she didn’t do it. When questioned by Merculief’s father about what happened, Washington said Merculief wouldn’t let them leave and that she saw the victim bleeding. She told him the victim said Merculief stabbed her.

Second arrest and new charges

Merculief was initially arrested for violating his probation conditions for consuming alcohol. After being released, troopers re-arrested him on Feb. 3 on the new charges.

During a second interview after his re-arrest, Merculief again denied stabbing the victim and said he didn’t know how they got the stab wound. He claimed he saw Washington grab a knife away from the victim, then told both of them to get out of his house. He denied drinking homebrew, saying Washington brought it over.

Merculief was taken to Anvil Mountain Correctional Center, where he was remanded on the new charges.

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