Palmer man shot to death

MAT-SU — Alaska State Troopers say a 45-year-old Palmer man was found shot to death near Mile 52, Glenn Highway.

Frank L. Pushruk was “confirmed deceased” just before midnight Wednesday evening. Troopers say his body will be sent to the state medical examiner for an autopsy and that they are investigating the case as a homicide.

“I probably won’t be able to say anything until after the autopsy or until there’s possibly maybe an arrest,” AST spokeswoman Megan Peters said Thursday morning. “Without the autopsy, there’s not much more we can say about the body because they’re the ones that get to determine the cause and manner of death. But we are investigating it as a homicide.”

Mile 52 is just outside Palmer city limits on the north side of town. Emergency-band scanner traffic Thursday morning included talk of an operation at the Matanuska River overlook.

Asked what kind of operation was ongoing, Peters indicated it was ongoing work in furtherance of the homicide investigation.

On scene Thursday, three people, at least two who were uniformed troopers, used Total Station surveying-style tools to measure distances in order to gather information into the shooting.

A temporary “Do Not Enter” sign had been erected at the foot of the trail that leads to the top of the riverbank. Two marked patrol cars, a van of the sort troopers often use as unmarked vehicles and a small gray four-door Honda sedan sat in the pullout.

Asked if troopers are looking for any suspects, Peters replied that the case is under investigation.

A search of borough property and court records returned relatively little for Pushruk. His record in the past seven years has been spotless and contained mostly misdemeanors before then, with the exception of a 2007 felony drunken driving conviction.

Contact Andrew Wellner at 352-2270 or andrew.wellner@frontiersman.com.