Authorities said the body of an Alaskan woman strangled by her boyfriend was found 13 hours after she called 911 pleading for help due to bad weather that prevented police from reaching her remote village.
Mari Unok, 37, was found dead by state troopers around 2 p.m. Thursday at her home in the isolated village of Kotlik, on the coast of Norton Sound in southwest Alaska.
On the same day, she called 911 shortly after 1 a.m. and told the dispatcher that her 44-year-old boyfriend, Pius Tiluk, was “crazy for her” and threatened to shoot her.
The police statement said the call was interrupted and they were unable to reach Unok or drive to the village, which could only be reached by air and water, due to inclement weather.
Teeluk called the police around 11 a.m. Thursday, saying he woke up to find Unok dead.
Unok was found lying on some sort of “bed and/or couch”. Under the body was the blood of a domestic dog, which Tiluk is also accused of killing. A forensic examination determined that Unok died of strangulation.
Tiluk was arrested on Saturday and charged with murder.
The couple had a well-documented history of domestic unrest, police said. But at the end of February, Unok shared a photo of herself with Tiluk on Facebook and captioned it, “We’re doing well.”
Mari Unok, 37, was found dead at her home in the isolated village of Kotlik, on the coast of Norton Sound in southwest Alaska, by state troopers around 2:00 p.m. Thursday.
Unok called 911 shortly after 1 a.m. that same day and told the dispatcher that her 44-year-old boyfriend Pius Tiluk (pictured together) was “crazy for her” and threatened to kill her with a gun.
Kotlik is a small city in Alaska with a population of less than 700 people.
Unok tried to get help early Thursday morning by dialing 911.
According to the criminal complaint, dispatchers could hear Teeluk denying he tried to kill Unok before arguing with her.
The report added that both Unok and Teeluk sounded intoxicated. When the call ended, the police tried again to reach Unok, but they never got through to her.
The troops then “were unable to respond immediately due to inclement weather.”
Around the time Unok called, the temperature in Anchorage, near Kotlik, was about 31 degrees and the wind was 5-6 miles per hour.
The complaint alleges that after Teeluk called the police to report Unok’s death, “the weather calmed down enough” for the police to arrive “on a government plane”.
Kotlik is a small city in Alaska with a population of less than 700 people.
The couple had a well-documented history of domestic unrest, police said, but Unok shared a picture of her and Teeluk in late February and captioned it, “We’re doing fine.”
Teeluk has a long history of crimes and convictions dating back to 2005. In 2019, he was jailed on harassment and drug charges.
Teeluk later told police that they drank “at least a gallon” of homemade beer and had a heated argument over Facebook posts.
He claimed to have “grabbed [Unok] by the neck so that she would not hit him, ”and a few hours later found her dead.
The blood found near Unok was initially believed to be hers, but the police later determined that it belonged to Unok’s dog, Boo. Bu’s body was found near the house, police said.
Unok’s family started a fundraiser to gather the next of kin for the funeral.
“This will greatly help our sister to return home to put her to rest. Everything will help. Any help would also mean a lot. Even if it’s just an exchange,” Caroline Unok wrote on Facebook.
“No words can describe how intense this pain is inside. As children, we were inseparable. I love you Marie Jean.
Teeluk has a long criminal history dating back to 2005. In 2019, he was jailed on harassment and drug-related charges.
He also violated parole in 2015 after being charged in 2014 with fourth-degree assault and theft of a car in 2013.
“No words can describe how intense this pain is inside. As children, we were inseparable. I love you Marie Jean,” wrote Caroline Unok on Facebook, who said she was Unok’s sister.