A man that broke into the school in the lower Yukon community of Kotlik with a rifle was arrested by state troopers on Feb. 17. The community then lifted its lockdown, and school was back in session on Feb. 18.
On the night of Feb. 16, a school security officer in Kotlik reported that he saw a man with a rifle inside the school. The community went into lockdown on Feb. 17 and school was canceled. According to Kotlik principal Xavier Downs, the man with the rifle stayed inside the school throughout the night and into the afternoon on Feb. 17.
Troopers were alerted of the incident a little past midnight on Feb. 17. A spokesperson said that troopers in Bethel were facing challenging weather, so the troopers' Southcentral Special Emergency Reaction Team, based in Anchorage, responded and arrived in Kotlik on Feb. 17.
According to an online trooper report, troopers arrested Kotlik resident Calson Aparezuk, 34, inside the school around 4:45 p.m. on Feb. 17 without incident. Troopers found that Aparezuk broke a window to enter the school. The report said that two other adults were in the school at the time, but they were able to convince Aparezuk to let them leave the building.
Aparezuk was transported to Anchorage and remanded to the Anchorage Correctional Center. Charges against him include assault in the third degree, trespassing, and criminal mischief.
