Nome man held on $100,000 bail, charged on strangling girlfriend

Tyler Avery Shold, 27, remains in custody at Anvil Mountain Correctional Center where he is being held on $100,000 bail.
Shold is facing a charge on first degree murder, with intent to cause the death of another person, an unclassified felony, according to court records. Alcohol was involved. Shold appeared for Felony First Appearance in the Second District Court in Nome on Jan. 9., before Magistrate Judge Pamela S. Smith.
Shold has not yet entered a plea; the court at arraignment ruled the defendant qualified for the services of a public defense attorney without cost or for reduced cost.
According to court documents, Nome Police Dept. Officer Elizabeth Jachim and Sgt. Marc Morris responded to a residence in the 200 block of East Fourth Avenue on Jan. 8, just before 2 a.m. following the defendant’s call to NPD dispatch for help for his girlfriend Anna Matoomealook, 24.
Entering the residence, the officers found Shold leaning over Matoomealook, lying unresponsive on the bed. Shold was yelling “Save her, please! Just save her!” according to the sworn affidavit signed by Morris.
Morris commenced to perform CPR on Matoomealook until emergency responders arrived with the Nome Volunteer Ambulance Department. EMTs made the decision to take Matoomealook to the emergency department at Norton Sound Regional Hospital, but “said she did not have a pulse,” according to a document filed in court on Jan. 8.
Attempts to revive Matoomealook were unsuccessful. She was pronounced dead at the hospital, according to a NPD press release. The police statement says further information will be released at the conclusion of the investigation.
Toward that end, NPD obtained three search warrants for examination of Shold at the hospital, for an evidentiary blood draw and for photographing and collecting evidence at the couple’s apartment.
At the scene on Jan. 8, Jachim read Shold his Miranda warning. “He said that he understood and was willing to answer questions,” according to court records. However, when Morris asked what happened, “at that point, the defendant requested an attorney and Morris stopped questioning him.”
Zachary Davies, public defender, suggested a lower bail in Shold’s case—$10,000, telling the court Jan. 9 that he did not see that the defendant had intent in the case, and that $10,000 was as out of reach as $100,000. The court noted the serious of the accusation and ordered $100,000.
Olgoonik Corp. of Wainwright on its website lists Matoomealuk as a shareholder. The couple had been involved in a long-term relationship, according to acquaintances.
Shold’s next court appearance is on the calendar for a preliminary hearing on Jan. 17.