A man who shot to death a drinking acquaintance on a South Anchorage bike path was sentenced to 30 years in prison Friday.

Roger Perkins, now 47, shot Elmer Patrick, 48, in the head with a pistol after putting it to his head and saying, "Wouldn't it be a bitch if this gun went off?"

Perkins claimed he didn't know why the gun went off.

Perkins pleaded guilty to second-degree murder as part of a deal with prosecutors in June.

The two men, who had never previously met, were drinking an 18-pack of Miller Genuine Draft beer and smoking cigarettes on April 12, 2008, with a third man. Perkins only knew Patrick's name as "Duckie." They were hanging out along the popular Campbell Creek trail off Arctic Boulevard when Perkins pulled the .45-caliber pistol from a shoulder holster.

A man walking his dogs on the Campbell Creek Trail later found Patrick, alone, sitting cross-legged and bleeding from the head.

Perkins left the scene but police caught up with him when he returned hours later and caught an officer's attention.

Superior Court Judge Jack Smith also sentenced Perkins to 10 years of probation after he is released.

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