Family mourns woman killed in ‘suspicious’ accident involving boyfriend, police say

HOMER, Alaska (KTUU/Gray News) - A family and community in Alaska is mourning the loss of a young woman who was killed in an apparent shooting last Saturday.

According to police, they found Brianna Hetrick was found dead from a gunshot wound.

Police said Hetrick’s boyfriend, 35-year-old Arturo Mondragon-Lopez, was arrested at the scene and charged with second-degree murder.

Mondragon-Lopez had moved to Alaska just four months before the shooting.

The Homer Police Department said the suspect told them he accidentally fired a handgun as they were having a moment of intimacy.

Officials said the suspect’s version of the story is “suspicious” and “rare.”

Hetrick’s family was in a state of shock and mourning when KTUU spoke with them on Tuesday.

John Hetrick, Brianna Hetrick’s father, said she was full of energy and life and was an extremely loving and outgoing person who took care of her peers.

“A unique opportunity to raise such a wonderful child full of joy,” John Hetrick said. “Happiness, always happy and just laughing, her laugh was infectious. Never had a problem with her ever. She did really well in school, and played three different sports.”

Brianna Hetrick and her father worked together. He said they had a relationship like no other.

“I can’t explain it, she just, she was my world,” John Hetrick said.

John Hetrick said he wishes he was there to protect his daughter, who he said was the biggest blessing of his life.

“It surprises me that she got in this relationship with this guy, it’s not who she was,” he said.

While a student at Homer High School, Brianna Hetrick played volleyball, softball and basketball.

KTUU spoke with Bill Bell, the head softball coach at the high school, who said Brianna Hetrick was an athlete every team and coach wants on their side.

“She shows up, she’s smiling, she’s laughing, she makes the team relaxed, she gives her all. There’s no challenge that she wouldn’t accept,” he said. “She was clearly a leader of the team for all of the years she played with us and will be very sorely missed as a very important part of our team history.”

A GoFundMe has been established to help pay for Brianna Hetrick’s funeral expenses and memorial.

“To know how many people loved her and respected her, it’s just mind-blowing,” John Hetrick said.

Mondragon-Lopez is scheduled to appear in court in Kenai on Nov. 8.

Brianna Hetrick’s death is still being investigated, according to authorities.

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