In the dark, early hours of November 30, 2020, Male, age 18, Dakota “Cody” Roehl was shot at a home near Wasilla, north of Anchorage. Alaska State Troopers arrived a little after 3 a.m. and found him gravely wounded; he was taken to a nearby hospital, where he died. Family members at the scene gave troopers a description of the suspect and the vehicle involved as the investigation began moving quickly across the Mat-Su Valley.
As the night unfolded, law enforcement responded to a second location in Palmer, where they discovered an even larger tragedy connected to the same chain of events. There, Roehl's aunt, 43-year-old Kimora Buster, and two of her children, ages 7 and 10, were found shot; all three died, making four family members killed across two related crime scenes. Reporting and charging documents described a single violent spree linking the Wasilla shooting that claimed the life of Male, age 18, Dakota Roehl to the Palmer homicides.
Investigators and charging documents identified an 18-year-old suspect, Malachi Maxon, a cousin of Male, age 18, Dakota Roehl. Authorities said Maxon first shot Male, age 18, Dakota Roehl at the Wasilla residence, then took a white Jeep Patriot and a semiautomatic Glock pistol before driving to the Palmer home, where he shot Roehl's aunt and two younger cousins. The children were later identified in additional reporting as Sienna Buster, 10, and Ellison Buster, 7.
Troopers arrested Maxon the same day and prosecutors charged him with multiple counts of first-degree murder, along with attempted murder and escape-related charges after he tried to flee during transport and allegedly reached for a trooper's holstered firearm before being subdued. He was described in news accounts as having been released from jail a week earlier on a domestic-violence case, and subsequent coverage noted he faced an additional charge for allegedly assaulting a corrections officer after his arrest.
Public records and memorial pages confirm that Male, age 18, Dakota “Cody” Roehl died on November 30, 2020, in the Palmer/Wasilla area, and that four family members were killed in the spree that day. Authorities publicly connected the shootings in Wasilla and Palmer, and named Maxon as the sole suspect in custody.
