Alaska Department Of Public Safety,State Troopers Public Information Office

Dispatch Text:

On August 7, 2023, at 10:08 am, the Alaska State Troopers were notified that an adult male had been stabbed at a hotel in Trapper Creek. Troopers and EMS responded to the scene and located 21-year-old Florida resident Jose Torres-Ayala had been stabbed and had sustained serious injuries. Torres-Ayala was medevaced from the hotel; however, despite life-saving efforts died. The Alaska Bureau of Investigation’s Mat-Su Major Crime Unit assumed case responsibility. Their investigation revealed that 33-year-old Michael Melendez had stabbed Torres-Ayala. Both individuals were employees at the hotel. Melendez was arrested and remanded to Mat-Su Pretrial on charges of Murder in the First Degree and Murder in the Second Degree. Torres-Ayala’s body was sent to the State Medical Examiner’s Office for autopsy; his next of kin have been notified. The investigation is active and ongoing.