Charlie "Bubbles" Nyback was a police chief in Nightmute, Alaska.
He worked with detectives Will Dormer and Hap Eckhart, but hadn't seen them for seven or eight years when Kay Connell was murdered in his district. He called Buck Lungard for advice on the case, who responded by sending Dormer and Eckhart out to Nightmute to assist in the investigation. John Warfield asked to be kept up to date with the detectives' movements, but Nyback disregarded the order and gave the two men space to work. When the detectives arrived, he introduced them to the other officers.
The next day, Kay's bag was found in a fishing cabin, and at Dormer's request Nyback had Rich stop Francis from going near the cabin. Dormer then had them replace the bag and put out a story that the police were looking for it, to lure the killer back to the cabin. However he talked to Nyback and started expressing doubts about the plan, in case internal affairs used it against him sometime down the line. Nyback reassured him and told him not to worry about it.
After the sting operation, Farrell Brooks was shot in the leg and Eckhart was shot dead. Charlie went through the events with Dormer, who told him that the killer was responsible for both shootings. Dormer grew angry that he didn't know about the tunnels where the killer escaped, and Nyback told him there was nothing that could have been done. He then called in Ellie Burr and put her on the Eckhart shooting, telling her that Anchorage had called and wanted an investigation into his death.
When Randy Stetz was arrested for Kay's murder, Nyback heard Duggar's report about the arrest. He told him that Dormer was heading back to Los Angeles the following morning.