Double shooting was murder-suicide, troopers say

TALKEETNA — Authorities have identified one of two people involved in a shooting incident in the Montana Creek area Saturday morning that left one man dead.

Andre LaFrance, 33, of Wasilla, was discovered dead from a gunshot wound in a Montana Creek area residence about 1 a.m., April 18, troopers said. Another person was found critically wounded at the same scene and was transported to an Anchorage hospital for treatment, according to Alaska State Troopers.

LaFrance’s next-of-kin has been notified, according to troopers Public Information Officer Beth Ipsen. Investigators said they do not believe anyone other than the two victims was involved in the incident, Ipsen added.

The surviving victim apparently called the Palmer Police Department and told dispatchers he killed someone, Ipsen said. It was only after the cellphone service provider provided a location for the phone that troopers were able to find the location where the shooting took place, according to troopers.

The surviving patient, whose name had not yet been released Monday afternoon, apparently shot LaFrance, then turned the gun on himself, according to Ipsen.

“What led up to the shooting is still unknown and being investigated,” she said.

Authorities charged LaFrance with attempted murder in 2011 for his part in a notorious Mat-Su Pretrial incident, in which LaFrance spit in the face of a Department of Corrections official who was attempting to prevent him from committing suicide, according to the Frontiersman archives. Authorities initially charged LaFrance with attempted murder on the grounds that he knew he was infected with Hepatitis C, a lifelong and potentially fatal viral infection, according to the archives. Those charges were eventually downgraded to third- and fourth-degree assault and a single misdemeanor count of first-degree harassment by contact with offensive bodily fluids, court documents show.

LaFrance eventually pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor count in exchange for the dismissal of the two assault charges, court documents show.

LaFrance’s most recent appearance in Palmer Superior Court was in February 2013, when he pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree theft, according to court records. Prosecutors dismissed seven counts of first-degree forgery, and one count each of fraudulent use of an access device and evidence tampering.

The Talkeetna-area troopers post is slated for closure later this year because of budget constraints.

The investigation into the shooting incident is ongoing, Ipsen said.

Contact Brian O’Connor at 352-2269, brian.oconnor@frontiersman.com, or on Twitter @reporterbriano.