US Army serviceman stationed in Alaska is accused of fatally shooting his newlywed wife, stashing her body in a storm drain

Zarrius Hildabrand, 21, has been charged with raps including first-degree murder and tampering with evidence in the slaying of his spouse

Alaska National Guard combat medic Saria Hildabrand, 21 ,was then found dead Thursday in a storm drain near the couple’s Anchorage apt

She was found with a gunshot wound to the left temple

Zarrius reported her missing 36 hours after her death, then began posting desperate Facebook messages about her disappearance and helping her family the search, up to the point he was arrested

The couple had met at basic training last summer and were married in December 2022

US Army serviceman Zarrius Hildabrand, [photo], has been taken into custody and remanded at the Anchorage Jail for Murder 1, Murder 2, and Tampering with Evidence in the death of his wife of eight months Saria Barney Hildabrand

A US Army serviceman stationed in Alaska is accused of fatally shooting his new wife, stashing her body in a storm drain , before posting desperate Facebook messages about her disappearance and helping his mother-in-law in the search for his supposedly missing wife.
Zarrius Hildabrand, 21, has been charged with raps including first-degree murder and tampering with evidence in the slaying of his wife, Alaska National Guard combat medic Saria Barney Hildabrand.
Hildabrand, a cannon crewmember assigned to the 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, reported 21-year-old Saria missing Monday evening, August 7, KTUU reported.

After allegedly shooting his wife Saria [right], and dumping her body in a drain, in the early hours of on Sunday Aug 7, Zarrius Hildabrand [left], reported her missing Monday. Pretending to help in the search, he posted an appeal on his Facebook page Wednesday night

Saria Hildabrand was then found dead from a gunshot wound to the left temple Thursday in a 4-by-5-foot storm drain near the couple’s Anchorage apartment, according to the police report.
Keeping up the farce Hildabrand on Wednesday night posted on Facebook  above a picture of his wife’s “missing” poster, “Updated information on my missing wife PLEASE SHARE AND REPOST!!!!!!”.
Saria’s body was discovered the next day and he was in custody less than 48 hours later.
Saria’s distraught mother, Meredith Barney, Friday said, “He [Zarrius], walked around for hours with me searching for my daughter knowing that she was dead.
“He lied to me multiple times and tried to play it off like he was a concerned husband.”

Saria Hildabrand, [photo], a medic with the Alaska National Guard was found dead from Thursday in a storm drain near the Anchorage apt she shared with her husband. Zarrius Hildabrand has been charged with his wife’s murder

The charging documents state that, Zarrius and Saria Hildabrand were out with friends on the night of Saturday August 5, celebrating his 21st birthday.
Reporting Saria missing Monday, Hildabrand told police he and Saria returned home around 2 a.m. Sunday after celebrating his birthday downtown with friends.
A neighbor reportedly, heard a gunshot around 2:45 a.m. from a nearby apartment, but did not go outside to investigate out of fear.
Hildabrand claimed his wife Saria, a combat medic with the Alaska National Guard, left between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. Aug. 6 for her second job at a local restaurant. She walked to work because both of them were hungover and did not feel well enough to drive, he told cops.
He also claimed that she left her phone in the apartment but took her purse and wallet.
Hildabrand told police he “vegetated” at home while he believed his wife was at work, though he later backtracked and said he ran a few errands. However, in a separate interview Saria’s friends said she had mentioned that she did not plan to work August 6.

Hildabrand appealed for help finding Saria’s on Facebook on Wednesday, three days after he allegedly shot her dead. Cops on Tuesday found two pistols on their kitchen table, one fully loaded, while the other was missing a single bullet, along with blood evidence

Hildabrand claimed he did not realize his wife was missing until he went to pick her up from work at 7 p.m. and learned she never arrived, said that “he had been searching for Saria ever since.”
He told cops he had been to every friend’s house, called Saria’s parents, contacted all the hospitals, and jail. – Contacting police 36 hours after Saria was last seen, because he was hoping he would track down his wife and “find [her disappearance] was a misunderstanding.”
After Saria was reported missing, her co-workers told officers that they received a text from her number at 10:45 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 6, saying she was calling off work.
While Hildabrand has denied sending the message, the couple’s apartment was a trove of DNA evidence.
Police interviewing Hildabrand on Tuesday noticed two pistols on the kitchen table – one fully loaded, while the other was missing a single bullet.
The apartment’s only bed which did not have a sheet, was covered by a mattress pad with a package of new sheets nearby. The suspect turned down police request to lift and examine the bed on the pretext that there were “embarrassing” items and “stuff used for sex” underneath, according to the police report.
Investigators learned Hildabrand purchased a set of sheets matching the brand found at the apartment, a mattress cover, hydrogen peroxide and an empty spray bottle August 6.
Furthermore he had purchased a 96-gallon garbage can from a nearby Lowes. Executing the search warrant cops found a mop and mop bucket in the apartment, matching the brand sold on the same aisle as the can.

Saria Barney and Zarrius Hildabrand met at basic training last summer and were married in December. She moved to Utah to join him at his posting in Alaska, six months ago

On examination the mattress in the apartment was “saturated by human blood. the complaint detailed.
“There was so much blood on the mattress that the blood soaked through onto the carpet and into the wood frame,” the the complaint states.
Investigators also found evidence of blood all over the bathtub and some of the floors, “most likely after ‘cleanup’ attempts were made,” the document said. 
Police eventually located the bloody garbage can on a trail near the couple’s apartment.
A drone search subsequently found Saria’s remains stashed in the storm drain.
Saria Barney and Zarrius Hildabrand met at basic training last summer and were married in December 2022, her mom said. Saria moved from Utah to Alaska about six months ago to be with her new husband.
The GoFundMe that was initially started to raise money for the search effort is now being diverted to covering funeral costs and returning Saria’s remains to Utah, the family added.