White / Caucasian, Male, John Sibole, age 49, was fatally shot on the night of March 10, 2025, at a home on North McKinley Way in Willow, Alaska. Alaska State Troopers were called around 9:15 p.m. and found John Sibole, age 49, deceased at the scene; his body was later sent to the State Medical Examiner and next of kin were notified. The Alaska Bureau of Investigation assumed the case, with troopers documenting that the incident unfolded inside a residence linked to the victim's family and
acquaintances.
In the hours leading up to the shooting, a household chore became the spark: according to charging documents summarized by Alaska Public Media, a dispute over carrying and stacking firewood escalated after a brief shoving match between a resident of the home and the victim's wife, who had arrived with three of her children to help clean and move wood. After she left, she phoned her husband; John Sibole, age 49, then came to the house with his son. The son told investigators he followed his father inside and immediately heard raised voices and then a single gunshot. Family members who entered moments later found the victim in the hallway outside the shooter's room with an apparent wound to the abdomen.
Troopers reported arresting Jared Higgins, 31, a Willow resident who had been renting a room in the home since late January. He was charged with second-degree murder and three counts of third-degree assault and was remanded to the Mat-Su Pretrial Facility; the investigation remained active and ongoing. The charging narrative notes that witnesses on a 911 call yelled at the shooter to stop pointing a firearm at them after the gunshot, while the defendant told troopers he had retrieved his handgun, was struck, and then fired once, asserting familiarity with state self-defense law. Investigators recorded minor redness and a scratch on him, and they noted his admission that he had smoked marijuana earlier that evening. All charges are accusations and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
Public records of the incident and memorial listings identify the victim and date, with independent trackers recording the Willow shooting on March 10, 2025. These entries align with the official trooper dispatch and the subsequent charging details reported by local media.
