A U.S. Army soldier convicted of fatally shooting his wife after a night out celebrating his 21st birthday then hiding her body in a storm drain in Alaska has been sentenced to nearly six decades in prison.
Zarrius Hildabrand, 24, was sentenced Oct. 25 for the August 2023 killing of 21-year-old Saria Barney Hildabrand, of Utah, the Alaska Department of Law said in a news release.
A jury in June found Hildabrand guilty of one count of second-degree murder and two counts of tampering with evidence in the case in Anchorage Superior Court, the state agency headed by the Attorney General wrote in the release.
Evidence presented at trial in found the solder − then a combat medic in the Alaska Army National Guard − shot his wife in the head after she
confronted him with evidence he had been unfaithful, the release continues.
"Over the next several days the defendant purchased cleaning materials and disposed of Saria’s body in a nearby storm drain, pouring gasoline over top of her," the release reads. "He then filed a false missing persons report and helped her family and members of the military and police force search for her."
In handing down his sentence, Judge Peter Ramgren commented on "the abhorrent nature" of Hildabrand’s actions afterwards and his apparent lack of remorse through police interviews, the search for his wife, and his testimony at trial.
The judge also said Hildabrand "never seemed to show concern for anyone other than himself," the release continues, then sentenced him to 59 years in prison.
The case was investigated by the Anchorage Police Department with help from the Army Criminal Investigation Division.
USA TODAY has reached out to the victim's family members.
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Soldier sentenced to 59 years for killing wife, hiding body in storm drain
