(Anchorage, AK) – Monday, 36-year-old Andrew John Eknaty and 35-year-old Carleigh Kaye West (formerly Carleigh Kaye Fox), of Anchorage, were sentenced by Anchorage Superior Court Judge Andrew Peterson for causing the deaths of three people and injuring numerous others in the 2017 fire that destroyed the Royal Suites Lodge in Anchorage.

Eknaty and West each previously pleaded guilty to three counts of Manslaughter and one consolidated count of Assault in the First Degree. Judge Peterson accepted the parties’ agreement and sentenced both Eknaty and West to 60 years and 20 days imprisonment with 36 years suspended. They will both be placed on supervised felony probation for 10 years after release.

The charges against Eknaty and Fox stem from the Feb. 15, 2017, fire that destroyed the Royal Suites Lodge, a residential apartment complex near the intersection of Minnesota Drive and W 43rd Avenue. Vivian Hall, Laura Kramer, and Teuaililo Nua died, and numerous other individuals were injured, because of the fire. The case was investigated by the Anchorage Police Department’s Homicide Unit, the Anchorage Fire Department, the Alaska State Fire Marshal, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

At sentencing, several victims spoke regarding the continued trauma that they have incurred because of the defendants’ conduct. Judge Peterson noted that the sentence recognized the community condemnation of the conduct and constituted significant individual deterrence to both defendants not to engage in criminal behavior in the future.

Both defendants are currently in the custody of the Alaska Department of Corrections.

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