Douglas Cleaves, a 25-year-old white man, was shot dead in the early minutes of October 19, 1985, at his Sand Lake duplex in Anchorage. A masked intruder wearing a balaclava, combat gloves, and a tan trench coat forced the door carrying what witnesses believed was a bolt-action hunting rifle, walked straight to Cleaves and fired five times—three shots to the head and two to the chest—before fleeing. Police and medics were called just after 12:20 a.m.; officers found Cleaves dead at the 8900 block of Forest Village Drive.

Cleaves had been recovering from a severe workplace electrical accident that summer that resulted in both legs being amputated below the knee and serious fingertip burns. He was relearning daily life while involved in a custody dispute with his ex-wife; allegations about drug use arose during that fight but were denied by Cleaves and not substantiated publicly. Investigators described a thin shooter about 5 feet 6 inches to 5 feet 8 inches, the distinctive trench coat and ski mask, and a high-powered hunting rifle. No arrest has been made; Crime Stoppers offered a reward that rose from $10,000 to $25,000 and the case remains open.

Did anyone in the Sand Lake area hear or see anything that night, or know more about Cleaves’s custody dispute or recent adversaries?