Anchorage Man Sentenced For Being A Felon In Possession Of Firearms

Anchorage, Alaska - U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced that, on Jan. 21, 2016, an Anchorage man was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge Timothy M. Burgess to serve 46 months in prison for possessing firearms as a convicted felon.  

Christopher Haynes, 26, of Anchorage, Alaska, previously pled guilty to jointly possessing several firearms at the scene of a “home invasion” shooting on Jan. 27, 2015.   Haynes, a felon, was prohibited from possessing firearms at the time of the incident. 

According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank V. Russo, who handled the sentencing hearing, the Anchorage Police Department was called to the scene of a “home-invasion” shooting on Jan. 26, 2015, at an apartment in Anchorage.  The defendant was present at the address, along with his girlfriend, his brother Christian Haynes, his brother’s fiancée, Krystal Hawk, and several children.   Christian Haynes and Krystal Hawk died from gunshot wounds inflicted by the assailants, who fired into the apartment after forcing in the door, which had been barricaded.  The defendant, his girlfriend, and the children escaped injury.  When officers searched the residence, they seized five firearms, including three 9 mm pistols and two assault rifles.  One of the firearms was found in the defendant’s bedroom.  

The double murder was the last in a string of three shootings that began on Jan. 24, 2015, with a home invasion of Christian Haynes’ residence located on Reka Drive in Anchorage.  During that shooting, assailants forced their way into the residence, fired numerous shots, and kicked a six-year old child in the face.  Later that same evening, a “drive-by” shooting took place on San Roberto Avenue in Anchorage, in an apparent retaliation for the first shooting.  In that shooting, a little girl in an adjacent apartment was grazed by a bullet.  A vehicle matching the description of Christian Haynes’ truck was seen leaving the area.  Ballistic evidence recovered at that scene matched two of the firearms recovered from the defendant’s residence, where Christian Haynes went to stay after his house was attacked. 

Currently, Michael Reynold is under indictment by the State of Alaska for the murders of Christian Haynes and Krystal Hawk.  Reynold is charged in a related case in federal court, which alleges that he and 11 other co-defendants are part of the “Fairview MOB,” which is affiliated with the Bloods street gang.   The FBI and Anchorage Police Department continue to investigate both the activities of the Fairview MOB and the homicides and related shootings.  Anyone with information on these cases can call the FBI at (907) 276-4441 or Crime Stoppers at 561-STOP. 

During Christopher Haynes’ sentencing hearing, Judge Burgess noted that the defendant had in some respects been punished already due to the death of his family members; however, he acknowledged the “atypical” nature of the case, given the deaths and string of shootings.  Judge Burgess noted the consequences of this case are the very reasons that felons are prohibited from possessing firearms in the first place:  because when felons possess firearms “bad things can happen.”  Because of the seriousness of the offense, Judge Burgess imposed the 46-month sentence instead of the two-year sentence requested by the defendant. 

In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Loeffler commended the work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and the Anchorage Police Department (APD), who investigated the case, as well as the U.S. Attorney’s Office partnership with the Municipality of Anchorage, which has assigned a prosecutor to the U.S. Attorney’s Office to address gang crimes.