Grieving mother speaks out after son shot and killed in unsolved Anchorage homicide

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – For over a week, Jaconette Patterson has been left with more questions than answers about what exactly happened to her 30-year-old son, Denaris Patterson.

Other than knowing that he was the victim of a homicide that occurred in his early morning Oct. 15 near East Sixth Avenue and Boniface Parkway near San Juan Circle, she said many of the details surrounding the incident remain unclear.

“I don’t know what happened at the time, but the police haven’t told me anything yet. They just said they don’t have a suspect,” Patterson said. “I guess where it started, it was at Rocky Mountain Court, and then it ended up on … Sixth (Avenue).

“I’m like, what happened? How did he get from there to there?”

Around 6:52 a.m. that Tuesday, officers with the Anchorage Police Department responded to a report of a man firing a gun in the parking lot of the 5700 block of Rocky Mountain Court, where they believe they found Denaris’ body.

While police have not yet released Denaris’ name, as officers say he was pronounced dead at the scene from a gunshot wound to the upper body, in a statement they confirmed the incident was related to what s -would turn into a SWAT showdown that would last longer. 10 hours on Rocky Mountain Court.

Denarius Patterson, 30, seen here in a photo shared by his mother, Jaconette Patterson. It... — Denarius Patterson, 30, seen here in a photo shared by his mother, Jaconette Patterson. She says her son is the man police found shot to death in North Anchorage on Tuesday, October 15th.(Alaska News Source)

The police department said in a prepared statement the same evening that the officers were unable to find a person of interest which he is still looking for. Alaska News Source reached out to APD for an update on this search and has not heard back.

Patterson said he left Alaska five years ago to settle in Memphis, Tennessee. She returned to Anchorage last week to begin making funeral arrangements for her son, who she said is best remembered as a “goofy loving man.”

“He was always happy,” Patterson said. “Every time you see him, you see this big smile. He loved his family. He was just a person with a big heart.”

Patterson said he first learned of the news by reading the Alaska news and noted that “another person was shot in Alaska.”

A few hours later, he received a call from a cousin who told him that people in the area said the person shot might be Denaris. It wasn’t until APD contacted a Memphis detective that the news was confirmed.

In addition to feeling left in the dark about the details of her son’s slaying, she said she’s also frustrated with APD’s overall response. She said she still wonders how police could spend so much time on a standoff, only to come up empty-handed.

Sixth Avenue in Northeast Anchorage was closed after a shooting was reported.(Nolin Ainsworth)

“My brother sat there the whole time waiting to see, I don’t know. I don’t even know where they got the information that (the suspect) was still in the house. That was nine hours you wasted.”

She said APD has not told her the name of the person of interest they say is connected to the homicide, but she believes she knows that person of interest’s name and has even seen his photo.

Although police have not yet released the name of the person of interest, Patterson said they believe that person is an out-of-state resident and are concerned that in the hours spent in the unsuccessful standoff, that person may have fled the state.

While she continues to wait for answers, she said she has a message for that person of interest, wherever they are.

“Why did you shoot him? You guys could have fought, argued, whatever,” Patterson said. “You didn’t have to shoot him because he wasn’t armed so he wasn’t a threat to you and that’s how I feel.”

Denaris left behind her four-year-old daughter and younger sister who still lived in Anchorage. Born and raised in Anchorage, he attended Fairview Elementary and Clark Junior High before transferring to Bettye Davis East High School. He eventually graduated from the Military Youth Academy.