Joshua Alan Wade was born on March 13, 1980, in Great Falls, Montana. When he was very young, he moved to Anchorage, Alaska, to live with his father. His mother had to place him in the care of an acquaintance so she could work. Unfortunately, this acquaintance began to sexually abuse Joshua when he was just five years old.

Joshua's family and friends noted that he openly expressed hatred toward women, especially women of Alaska Native descent. His father and sister, along with several of his friends, shared these observations about his negative feelings.

Joshua Alan Wade's first confessed murder was that of John Michael Martin in May 1994. Martin, a 38-year-old man with schizophrenia, was found shot to death along a bike trail in Anchorage. Shortly before his death, he had left a Village Inn in Anchorage. At the time of this murder, Wade was only 14 years old and had no known connection to Martin.

In December 1999, Wade claimed he killed another man, Henry Ongtowasruk, who was 30 years old. Ongtowasruk lived at a motel in Knik-Fairview for about a week before he was discovered shot to death in one of the rooms by hotel staff. Like Martin, Ongtowasruk had no known connection to Wade.

In September 2000, Wade committed another murder. While driving with friends in Spenard, he spotted Della Brown, a 33-year-old Alaska Native woman. After dropping off his friends, he returned to try to rob her. During this attempt, a struggle occurred, and Wade hit her with a rock. He then left her half-naked body in an abandoned shed. Afterward, he mentioned killing an unidentified man in a separate incident, stating that he knocked the victim out and shot him execution-style in a secluded area after hearing him bang for help in the trunk of his car.

Wade was eventually arrested for Brown's murder, but due to lack of evidence, he was acquitted of most charges. He was convicted only of evidence tampering and sentenced to six and a half years, but was released on probation a year later.

On August 3, 2007, Wade murdered Mindy Schloss, a 52-year-old nurse practitioner. Wade entered her home, restrained her with zip ties, and forced her to reveal her ATM card and PIN. He then drove her to a remote location near Wasilla, where he shot her in the back of the head. After ensuring she was dead, he burned her body.

Schloss was reported missing when she failed to show up for work. Investigators found her car had been stolen and located her partially burned body a month later. Surveillance footage connected Wade to her ATM withdrawals, and neighbors described him as a suspect. After a few days of evading authorities, Wade was apprehended on September 2, 2007, after taking hostages at a friend's house.

During his trial, Wade initially refused to speak with investigators. However, evidence such as DNA from Schloss' car and a matching coat led to his conviction. He faced state and federal charges, and to avoid the death penalty, he accepted a plea deal. Wade was sentenced to 99 years in state prison and a federal life sentence.

While serving his sentence, Wade confessed to three additional murders, including the ones from 1994 and 1999, and made a deal to be transferred to a federal prison. He was eventually moved to Indiana State Prison, where he continued to serve his sentence.

On June 14, 2024, Wade was found unresponsive in his cell and was later pronounced dead. An investigation into the circumstances of his death is ongoing.