Police investigate shooting of Kmart theft suspect

Police are investigating the weekend shooting of a Juneau man accused of stealing nearly $100,000 from Super Kmart in late March, the man's attorney said today.

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Defense attorney Louis Menendez confirmed Frank Brian Rowcroft, 28, of Juneau, was shot Saturday morning. Police, who are not confirming the shooting victim's identity, said the man was found around 6 a.m. in the driveway of his grandmother's home in Auke Bay after he phoned police saying he was bleeding and in pain.

According to court records, his grandmother, whose name is being withheld, is one of Rowcroft's third-party custodians while he is out on bail in the Kmart theft case.

The wounded man is in stable condition today at Bartlett Regional Hospital, said Sgt. John Boltjes, head of investigations for JPD.

Police said today they believe Rowcroft was shot once in the arm, but the bullet traveled through the side of his abdomen and into his back, missing his vital organs.

Capt. Tom Porter said doctors removed a small caliber bullet from Rowcroft on Sunday. Boltjes said police haven't found the gun yet and need to send the bullet to Anchorage for testing. He said police may have ballistics results in one to two weeks.

By mid-morning today police had no "specific" suspects and no witnesses had come forward with information, Boltjes said.

Police attempted to interview Rowcroft as he was being admitted to the hospital Saturday, Porter said. At that time, Rowcroft told police he thought he remembered being in a fight, but his memory was fuzzy, Porter said.

Boltjes said Rowcroft had little to no memory of the incident, which is being investigated as an assault, when police interviewed him Sunday.

"He doesn't remember much of anything," said Boltjes. "He didn't know there was a bullet involved. He didn't know he'd been shot. We are still investigating, but the fact that he doesn't remember much makes it tough. We're grabbing at ends and trying to piece together what we've found at the scene."

Boltjes said police found duct tape on Rowcroft at the scene, but said he did not know its significance or whether Rowcroft had been bound by the tape.

Boltjes also said he wasn't sure whether anything was stolen from the victim during the attack or if the home had been broken into. Boltjes also did not know if Rowcroft was armed at the time he was shot.

Boltjes said police have interviewed Rowcroft's grandmother, who was home at the time of the shooting. Boltjes declined comment on what she told police, but said she was not harmed.

Rowcroft was indicted by a Juneau grand jury in May on charges of first-degree theft, a felony. He is accused of causing a blackout at the Juneau Super Kmart, where he was a security supervisor, and stealing about $99,000 in cash, checks, and credit card receipts. He was arrested in May at the Canadian border. Authorities allegedly found $33,000 in the trunk of his vehicle. Rowcroft was released earlier this summer on a $50,000 bond and under supervision of a third-party custodian.

Rowcroft has no prior criminal record, according to Alaska Court records, but faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted of the theft charge.

According to transcripts from a bail hearing in August, Menendez requested a new trial date because his client may be facing federal charges. Menendez and Assistant District Attorney Sue McLean declined comment on what the charges might be or whether Rowcroft faces further investigation. Federal officials with jurisdiction to investigate such a case did not return repeated calls made by the Empire.