JUNEAU, Alaksa (TCN) — A woman allegedly concealed her husband’s death by hiding his body in a freezer and continuing to collect his benefits for years.
Officers with the Juneau Police Department were called to a residence on July 19 after receiving a call that possible human remains had been found on the property. When officers arrived, they were told that a family member had died and that they were cleaning the property when they found a chest freezer in a locked outbuilding.
The remains were later identified as belonging to Ross Pasquan, according to police. Alaska’s News Source reports that he would have been 74 years old at the time his body was found wrapped in a tarp in the freezer.
Pasquan’s wife, Sheryl Ann McDonald-Pasquan, died nearly a year prior on July 14, 2025, from natural causes, per Alaska’s News Source. Relatives cleaning the property following her death found her late husband’s remains.
The office of the medical examiner determined Pasquan died from natural causes as well, and investigators believe that he was put in the freezer between 2018 and 2025, per Alaska’s News Source.
Investigators learned that McDonald-Pasquan allegedly hid the fact that he had died and continued to apply for and receive his benefits, including retirement and Social Security funds.
Witnesses said Pasquan’s wife was his sole caretaker and she allegedly explained his absence by saying that he had moved to a care facility outside the community, according to Alaska’s News Source.
Juneau Police Chief Derek Bos said Pasquan was never officially reported missing, the Juneau Independent reports.
Pasquan’s friend Mike Notar told the Juneau Independent Pasquan served in the National Guard and worked as a cement truck driver. He also enjoyed fishing, and according to Notar, had not been seen by friends for many years. Notar said, “He was missing for a long time. … There were a lot of conversations — ‘Where’s Ross?’ ‘Whatever happened to Ross?’ ‘Anybody ever hear about Ross Pasquan?’ And that’s about as far as it ever went.”
Police closed the investigation because McDonald-Pasquan is deceased, according to WSYX.
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