It was announced today by United States Attorney Karen Loeffler, that a Federal Grand Jury had returned an indictment against the man apprehended in Texas on March 13th, Israel Keyes. He is being charged Kidnapping resulting in the death of 18-year-old Samantha Koenig as well as Receiving and Possessing Ransom Money and Access Device Fraud.

Samantha Koenig dissappeared from the Common Grounds Coffee kiosk in a parking lot along Tudor Road on February 1st at about 8 pm.. According to the indictment, Keyes took Koenig against her will to his white pickup across the street. The indictment continued, saying that he killed her early the next morning before boarding a flight to Houston.

The indictment goes on to say that Keyes would steal a debit card from the vehicle Koenig shared and coerced Koenig to give him the PIN number for the card. He also took Koenig’s cell phone that he would use later to first, conceal the fact that she had been abnducted. It was these two items that Keyes would also later use to demand and collect ransom money for the already dead Koenig.

It was unknown to the public at that time why information was released by authorities saying that they believed her to be still alive. Keyes returned to Anchorage on February 17th, a week later, he sent a text message from Koenig’s phone to demand a ransom. The ransom demands covered up the fact that she was already dead. Ransom money was deposited into the account of the card that was stolen from Koenig’s vehicle, with the help of reward monies that was donated by members of the community and beyond.

It was the withdrawals from this card’s account that caused authorities to track him in various places in the lower 48. Keyes first withdrew money while in Anchorage before leaving back to the lower 48 on March 6th. After arriving at Las Vegas, Keyes continued on to Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, drawing money from the stolen card as he went.

When Keyes was arrested in Texas on March 13th by authorities in that state, Alaskan Detectives immediately announced that a person of interest was in custody in Texas. Detectives traveled to Texas and served search warrants before bringing Keyes back to the state. Found in the vehicle he was driving in Texas, were rolls of cash and other items, including the stolen credit card, ultimately connecting Keyes to the abduction of Koenig.

Detectives in Alaska seized Keyes construction truck as well as a storage shed from property in Anchorage in March before announcing on the evening of April 2nd, that they had located Koenig under the ice in Matanuska Lake. An autopsy confirmed everyone’s suspicions shortly thereafter.

If convicted of the kidnapping and death of Samantha Koenig, Keyes could receive the death penalty. Even though Alaska has no death sentence, because Keyes is being tried on Federal crimes, Federal Law and penalties would apply.