Steven H. Downs possessed two firearms at the time of 20-year-old Sophie Sergie’s death at the University of Alaska Fairbanks in April 1993, his former roommate testified Monday.
“I believe he had two pistols,” said Nicholas Dazer, who shared a room with Downs on the third floor of Bartlett Hall in 1993.
Dazer recalled that Downs brought the weapons to the university in late August 1992, the start of freshman year for both students. He said Monday that he did not find Downs’ possession of firearms unusual, as the two enjoyed hunting and fishing periodically in the area.
“I never saw Steve act inappropriately with his guns,” Dazer told jurors. “There are some people who play with guns inappropriately or don’t handle them safely, I never saw Steve do that, nor did I ever see him carry a gun except when we were hunting.”
“I’ve always considered him a very good friend,” he said, adding that he did not observe any physical signs of Downs’ involvement after the gruesome killing occurred.
Dazer said he was unsure if Downs possessed a knife at the time of Sergie’s death.
Downs, 47, of Auburn, Maine, faces charges of first-degree murder and first-degree sexual assault in connection with the death of Sergie, whose body was discovered raped, stabbed and shot in the second-floor bathroom of Bartlett Hall the afternoon of April 26, 1993. Downs was arrested and extradited to Alaska in 2019 after a family member submitted DNA to a genealogy website that reportedly matched DNA from the crime scene.
Burke Barrock, a former investigator with the criminal investigations unit, said that he briefly contacted Downs and Dazer while canvassing students in Bartlett Hall following the discovery of Sergie’s body.
Barrock noted that Downs suggested that local servicemen — who occasionally hung around the dormitory — may have been involved in the killing.
“There’s a footnote in my notes that said something about GI’s hassling girls,” Barack said, adding that he did not personally recall the 28-year-old conversation with Downs. “That’s what I noted in my notes was some comment that maybe there were GIs here that weekend.”
The trial is expected to last six weeks. Witness testimony will continue Tuesday at Rabinowitz Courthouse with retired state trooper Jim McCann.
Contact Liv Clifford at 459-7582, [email protected] or follow her at twitter.com/FDNMcrime.
