An Anchorage jury has delivered a unanimous verdict of guilty against a 52-year-old South African man, Brian Steven Smith, for the first-degree murder of two Alaska Native women. Smith, who showed no reaction in court upon hearing the verdict, was arrested after a woman stole his cellphone and discovered disturbing footage from 2019, which led to his confession.
Smith was found guilty on all 14 charges, including two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Kathleen Henry and Veronica Abouchuk. The jury heard how Smith narrated a video of Henry's death, urging her to die as she was tortured in an Anchorage hotel room. The evidence presented during the trial revealed the gruesome nature of the crimes committed by Smith.
