White/Caucasian male Jacob J. Stough, age 28, was found on the evening of March 16, 2018, inside a dark-colored sedan that had been left in the middle of the 8900 block of Dewberry Street in South Anchorage, blocking traffic. Residents approached the car shortly after 7 p.m., saw the body, and called 911. Responding officers began a death investigation at the scene; by the next morning, detectives determined the case was a homicide after finding that Jacob J.
Stough, age 28 and male, had been shot in the upper body. Investigators said early on that the killing appeared targeted and drug-related.
On March 19, 2018, police notified next of kin and publicly identified the victim as Jacob Stough, age 28 and male. That same day, detectives named a suspect: 39-year-old Samson Costigan. A warrant for first-degree murder was issued, and police warned the public that Costigan should be considered armed and dangerous while they sought tips on his whereabouts. News outlets amplified the alert, noting that Jacob Stough, age 28 and male, had been discovered shot to death in a vehicle on the city's south side.
In the weeks that followed, the search tightened. Detectives said they believed Costigan was moving between Anchorage and the Matanuska-Susitna Borough to evade capture. Then, following a citizen tip, APD's Investigative Support Unit took the suspect into custody; community notices and police updates recorded the development, effectively ending the manhunt.
The victim's name and date of death—March 16, 2018—also appeared in funeral and memorial notices, which affirmed Jacob J. Stough, age 28 and male, died in Anchorage that Friday. Separate compilations of gun-violence victims recorded the same date and place, alongside early reports referencing the homicide investigation and suspect search.
Through official dispatches and subsequent coverage, the outline remains stark: a car left askew on Dewberry Street at dusk; a 28-year-old man, Jacob J. Stough, male, shot to death; and a suspect named, pursued, and ultimately arrested after weeks of warnings and appeals to the public.
