JUNEAU, Alaska, Sept. 18 -- The Alaska Department of Law (Attorney General) issued the following news release:
September 15, 2026
(Palmer, AK) - Today, a Palmer jury convicted Michael Melendez, age 36, of Murder in the First Degree and two counts of Murder in the Second Degree for causing the death of Jose Torres Ayala, then age 21, in 2023.
On Aug. 7, 2023, Jose Torres Ayala, a server at the 20320 Alaskan Grill at the McKinley Princess Lodge in Trapper Creek, sat down to eat breakfast in the dining room of the restaurant when Michael Melendez, a former employee at the 20320, confronted him in his booth and stabbed him approximately ten times. Evidence at trial showed that Michael Melendez entered through a back door of the kitchen, retr...