An Eagle River woman said she went to an Anchorage TV station Friday for an interview about her book.
Molly Blakeley watched in shock on Friday morning, she said, as the local news anchor she’d just met for an interview dialed Anchorage Mayor Ethan Berkowitz and launched into an obscenity-filled tirade.
Things seemed off from the start, she said: Athens arrived 10-15 minutes late, and struck Blakeley as intoxicated when she did show up. Through her attorney, Michelle Nesbett, Athens said she’d been in the building the whole time but happened to be in the restroom when Blakeley arrived. She denies that she was intoxicated.
Blakeley says she assumed — but did not confirm — it was Ethan Berkowitz, because of his high profile as mayor and short stature. Blakeley says she made what she thought was a “casual comment” to Athens. The idea that her daughter had been involved with Berkowitz had been “hanging around in my head for the last two years,” she said.As soon as the comment came out, the mood in the TV studio changed, Blakeley said.Athens' version of the exchange is different: She maintains that Blakeley told her Berkowitz had “gone after” Blakeley’s young daughter when the daughter was under 18.
The next thing Blakeley knew, Athens was dialing Berkowitz to leave a voice mail, laced with anti-Semitic language, threatening to kill him and his wife.of which was later released by Berkowitz’s office. “You Jewish piece of living f--king s--t. You have met your match...”After he called back, saying he didn’t know what she was talking about, Athens called and left a second voicemail.
Blakeley said her feeling of unease grew. She reminded the group that she’d never said anything about an underage girl or photos. Athens denies this happened. Kosinski could not immediately be reached for comment and Centers has repeatedly refused to comment on what happened.By the time they parted ways, Athens had asked Blakeley to attend her wedding.
By 4:30 p.m., Athens had been arrested after a physical fight with Centers, the TV station manager who she later described in court as her fiance. “I didn’t think it would be OK for me to just keep quiet for the sake of my privacy and for the mayor to have his reputation completely ruined,” she said.
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