National Forest Serial Killer /// Part 1 /// Episode: 77 | Forensic Files

Heat. Heat. [Music] [Applause] Welcome to True Crime Garage. Wherever you are, whatever you are doing, thanks
for listening. I'm your host, Nick. And with me as always, a man who you and over 100 million more people can watch
on TV this Sunday, ladies and gentlemen, Lady Gaga's least favorite backup dancer, the very light on his feet, the
captain. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. It's good to be seen and it's good to see you. And man, my legs are tired.
[Music] Today we are drinking creme brulee by Southern Tier Brewing Company. Garage
grade five out of five bottle caps. I absolutely love this. I had this for the first time last Friday night. It's
unreal how they mask the 10% ABV with total dessert goodness. This tastes like creme brulee 100%. These dessert beers
though, I like to drink a little 5 oz glass of these because you know, you got to watch out for these things. They
taste so good, but they got so much alcohol, you don't want to put yourself into a bad situation. This for me,
Captain might replace Lizard of Cause is my current favorite. And this week's beer is brought to us by
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in Bloomington, Illinois. Bradley says, "Cheers, fellas." Thank you, Bradley. Let's stay in Illinois and say hi to
Becky from Chicago. Becky wants us to cover a female serial killer case. We could do a Girls Gone Wild episode,
Captain. We also have Shana in Bastrop, Texas. She says she is just down the road from the Chainsaw Massacre grocery
store. So, lucky you. And last but not least, we have Sarah from Olympia, Washington, who recommends some great
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>> And that's enough of the business. >> All right, gather around, grab a chair,
grab a beer, and let's talk some true crime. [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Applause]
[Music] [Applause] No trace yet of a missing 24year-old Gwynette County woman. Meredith Emerson
disappeared with her dog while hiking in the North Georgia mountains on New Year's Day. Now, investigators are also
looking for another hiker they call a person of interest in Meredith's disappearance. 11 Live's John Shurik is
at Vogel State Park in Union County where volunteers will return in the morning to continue their search. And
John, you have uh some very latest information for us about that person of interest.
>> Right, Brenda? This is a photo of the person of interest. The Union County Sheriff's Office released the photo and
name of the person of interest within the past hour. He is Gary Michael Hilton of Dicab County. Investigators want to
talk with Hilton. They say they just don't know yet if Hilton had anything to do with Meredith Emerson's
disappearance. All day above Blood Mountain, the State Patrol's infrared detectors scanned for
body heat below on the rugged ground. >> There it is. Volunteers shouted Meredith
Emerson's name. >> She vanished Tuesday afternoon during a hike with her black lab, Ella. Witnesses
say a Meredith encountered an older man on the trail. Police now identify him as
60-year-old Gary Michael Hilton of Dicap County. He also had a dog. And now police want to find him, too. They say
he looked like he'd been camping in the wilderness for some time. What stood out
about him? Everyone said he had bad teeth or no teeth. >> Um, I'm I'm praying hard.
>> Family and friends, Meredith's parents on the trails searching with everyone else. They say Meredith is a martial
arts student, an experienced hiker. Tough. >> Let me tell you something. Meredith
Emerson could do anything. She is feisty. She is strong. She's tiny and petite. 120 lbs. But let me tell you, I
have every hope that if anybody could, she can run those mountains. Investigators are interviewing everyone
close to Meredith in Gwinnet County, her home, and in her native Colorado. And they're interviewing everyone else they
can find who knows her, trying to uncover any other reason she might have disappeared with her dog, leaving her
car at the Trail Head parking lot. >> We're following up on everything. We are following up about her life, about her
friends. >> Yeah, they're not going to give up hope. I'm not giving up hope. Um, I'm hoping
there's a a cave or an area where a helicopter couldn't see it, but these these uh saints on foot can.
>> The person of interest, Gary Michael Hilton, was driving, according to investigators, a Chevy Astro van,
possibly with one of these two plates on it, a Georgia Tech 76APZ or a Georgia Tag AFQ1310.
Anyone with in any information about Gary Michael Hilton or the van, the minivan, or these license tags should
call the Union County Sheriff's Office. The number is 706-4396038. Again, 706-4396038.
We'll have that phone number and the license tags on our website, 11alive.com. Brenda,
>> John, of course, with this information, the police may in fact get the break that they need in this case. But let me
ask you, we began this day, as you well know, with police just looking for a person of interest and some very sketchy
details about it. How do we uh come to getting a picture of him and a license plate ID and a driver's license number
and all of that? How did that all come together? >> We asked that very question. And
investigators do not want to go into details right now. They have five or six witnesses, they said, who saw uh a man
that they now describe as this man. Five or six independent witnesses. They came
forward separately after uh news of uh this disappearance of Meredith Emerson came out. They said, "We saw a man on
the trail and they described him and they all give a similar description which investigators say match this man."
But how they were able to tie those descriptions to him, they're not saying just yet.
>> All right, John Sherik reporting from Union County there at the search command
center and we'll continue to follow the story. [Applause] This case starts off at a place called
Blood Mountain and we have a 24year-old woman, her name is Meredith Emerson, and
she has gone missing. Now, the way that this whole case starts off is we have New Year's Day, January 1st, 2008.
Meredith Emerson is an active, smart young woman who often went on day hikes with her dog Ella, which is a black lab.
Now, her roommate wakes up to a note on a chalkboard that simply says, "Took Ella, went for a hike." This is no big
red flag here. This is nothing out of the norm. >> Mhm. >> Perfectly normal situation. Now, the
roommate was very busy with friends on New Year's Day and failed to notice that Meredith did not return home that night.
It was not until the next morning that she started to think that something was up. Meredith was absent from work on
January 2nd, which is a big red flag. She was not the type to miss work. >> And most hikers, most avid hikers will
leave a note that they're going hiking, but they normally leave some kind of information on where they'll be hiking
at. >> Yeah. And and that was not the situation here. You know, the chalkboard simply
said took Ella, went for a hike. Well, when Meredith when her roommate finds out that she didn't come home and then
she doesn't show up for work, they had a mutual friend that worked with Meredith
and she contacts the roommate and says, "Look, something's up here because Meredith didn't come to work today."
It's at this point that the roommate and some of Meredith's friends start going through Meredith's belongings to try to
figure out where she may have gone hiking that day. They do come across some materials leading them to believe
that she would have taken the dog and gone hiking on Blood Mountain. Now, Blood Mountain is the highest peak in in
the Georgia section of the Appalachin Trail, and it's the sixth tallest mountain in Georgia. So, this is a very
popular hiking destination. Investigators go to Blood Mountain looking for Meredith, and they are a
little takenback from what little evidence they do find, but this is not pointing to anything good. This is not
positive feedback that they're getting here. They find water bottles and a dog leash that they believe would have been
for Ella belonging to Meredith. And in this same area on a trail, someone had reported finding a collapsible police
baton. >> And we've all seen one of these before, you know, uh on the police officer's
belt. Sometimes it it looks like maybe maybe the length of a pencil, but a little bit fatter.
>> Yeah. This is an item that you would typically find on a police officer on their Batman utility belt.
>> Yeah. And this took place of the old billy clubs. >> Yeah. Or night stick. But it would have
the same effect, but it's much more portable, you know, and you could if you struck somebody with one of these
objects. It's it's like being hit with a baseball bat. >> This is an item that comes into play
very important later. >> Yeah. Authorities now believe that Meredith went missing from this location
and that she did not get lost or suffer some kind of accident. that she this evidence is pointing towards an
abduction >> and they are now asking for the public's help. Some reports start coming in of
Meredith having been seen with a strange looking wiry old man approximately 50 to
60 years old. There was a photo given to police of a white van. This photo was taken the night before Meredith went
missing, but in the very same area. So police are now thinking that this could be connected and they release the
information that they have received to the public. So a be on the lookout is sent out to the public with the white
van, a man in his 50s or 60s, strangelooking and wiry. >> This man may have had a red retriever
dog with him. Well, this gets the police what they are looking for because a man
by the name of John Taber, a business owner, calls police and says, "I believe the man you are looking for is Gary
Michael Hilton. He used to work for me." Taber's company sold and installed siding and windows. And Gary Hilton
worked for Taber selling siding for about 10 years. He tells the police that Gary Hilton is of that age group. Last
time he had seen him, he looked extremely strange, saying something like Gary had told him that he had removed
some of his own teeth using a pair of pliers. >> Gary drove a white Chevy Astro van and
had a redcoled retriever dog named Dandy and also carried a police style baton with him almost everywhere he went. And
he also knew that Gary, he loved to hike and he loved to camp. And he did this all the time. Sometimes he was going to
parks and national forest daily to hike with his dog or as he would call it, you
know, he's taking his dog for a walk. >> Well, and not only did Taber know that Hilton like to carry a baton, a police
baton with him, but he also knew that he liked to hike at Blood Mountain. >> Yeah. Specifically, that was one of his
spots that he would go to. >> Yeah. And Taber and Hilton's relationship is is uh kind of stranged
at this point. >> That's a very polite way to put it. And and I'm sure that this is all
information that he's giving to the police that doesn't come out in these news bulletins because, you know, they
can't give too much away, but but talk a little bit about Taber and his relationship with Hilton. They worked
together for 10 years. Why don't they work together anymore? >> Well, I think there was some back and
forth. You know, Taber was the businessman. He was the money >> and uh Hilton was, you know, basically
the laborer, right? >> Yeah. He he was more into the sales end of it. He he he prided himself on being
if you ask Hilton what his job was, he would tell you he was the number one sale salesman for the sighting part of
the business. >> This guy thinks fondly of himself to say the least. >> And so with uh Taber, so I guess there's
some there's there's some discrepancy through their business endeavors. And Hilton believes that that Taber is not
paying him the money, right, that he's owed. So that's not where it stops there. It's not just, hey, I'm not going
to work for you anymore. It's, oh, by the way, I'm going to kill you. >> Yeah. Yeah. It sounds to me as if if
some for some reason Hilton believed because he was the quote unquote number one sales guy
>> of all time >> for Taber for all these for these sighting uh jobs that they did.
>> He believed that Taber owed him a bunch of money. And I I believe the dollar amount was like $10,000.
>> And Taber shows up and he discovers that Hilton's not really doing a good job
anymore. He's kind of a disgruntled employee, right? >> And he's he's just letting things go.
He's not really doing the work anymore after all these years. And not only that, he appears to either be on drugs
or losing it mentally. You know, we talked about that situation where Gary Hilton tells Taber that he had removed
some of his own teeth with a pair of pliers. >> Yeah. >> And it's at this point they get in this
this disagreement about the $10,000 and Hilton quits the job, but all the while he's saying, "I'm quitting, but you owe
me 10 grand and if you don't give me that money, well, I'm going to kill you. I'm going to shoot you."
>> Yeah. and he is so fearful of his life that he actually goes out and buys a gun, buys multiple guns to protect
himself uh and you know for a possible attack from crazy Hilton. >> Mhm. Well, and the other thing that
Taber knows about Hilton as well is, you know, he's known him for 10 years. And and Hilton would often come to Taber and
tell these stories of these hikes that he would go on. And he said it was the same story every time that Gary would go
out on these hikes with his dog and he would get into some altercation with some other hiker out in the woods
>> normally about their dog. >> Yeah. He he he would get like very upset if people didn't have their dogs on a
leash or if if they were letting them run wild. And he assumed that the dogs would attack him on multiple occasions.
He had been seen correcting or what others would call beating some of these other people's dogs, right?
>> And he would end up in these fights with other people. And Taber said, you know,
it's the same story every time that Gary Hilton, tell me about this altercation that he got into. And Gary was always
the victim. you know, he always fled the scene and avoided some kind of physical
altercation. >> Well, right. And and first of all, Gary is very thin. He's very It looks
fragile. >> He's wiry. >> Yeah. Very wiry. But here here's this guy that he believes that he's smarter
than everybody. >> Oh, definitely. >> You know, so not only is he smarter than everybody, but uh he's always in the
right. He's always the victim. You know, again, we see that he is the victim and
the whole uh Taber's not paying me enough money. You know, you owe me all this money. I'm the victim. You know,
then we get into this altercation. So, uh again, this guy just, you know, thinks the world of himself and all, by
the way, he's smarter than everybody. >> Yeah. Now, here's a strange thing, Captain. This is on the third day of
Meredith Meredith's disappearance or her, you know, presumed abduction, right? Gary Hilton makes a phone call
from a pay phone at a diner. And the strange thing here is who does he call? He calls John Taber,
>> right? >> That he hasn't talked to in years. >> Yeah. And he's unaware that John Taber
has contacted police and said, "You might be looking for this guy regarding this girl's disappearance." And what he
says to John Taber is that he says, you know, he wants to apologize to John for how he ended things with Jon in the
company and how he was he says he was sick for a while, but now he's much better and he's looking for work because
he's broke. >> Well, Taber here, he knows that the police are looking for Hilton because he
he he tipped him off, >> right? >> And Taber's going to try to set a trap. Taber agrees to throw Gary some work and
he's going to leave him a little money to help help Gary out. >> Yeah. About $800.
>> You're exactly right. He's going to leave a check for 800 bucks and he's going to leave it at this uh one of the
company's properties. >> Yeah. It was a rental property and Gary Hilton actually lived there for a while.
So he figured, well, I'll lure him to the place that he's familiar with. >> Yeah. Some place that he's comfortable.
And police go and they stake out this place. >> But of course, Gary never shows. And as
this is all going down, we have a couple attempts being made to access Meredith's
accounts using an ATM. Now, the police aren't for sure that Gary Hilton is our guy, but they're pretty sure. Yeah.
Yeah. They're looking for Gary. And as you had said, during this time, there's three attempts that we know of that
someone tried unsuccessfully using her bank card. Uh, and this is going to give everybody hope that Meredith is still
alive and still with us because because these attempts are unsuccessful. If somebody has taken her and is holding
her for the purpose of robbing her, they need to get her pen code so they can extract money. And this has not
happened. >> Yeah. This is a weird thought to me though that people believe that she'd
still be alive at this point because these attempts could be made after she passed away. I mean it, you know, you
you get a number or you don't get a number, but you have this card and then you're trying to make access. So, I
don't know what leads them to believe that she is still alive at this point. >> And I would agree with you. They they
probably have some information that we are unaware of because we've seen this in cases that we've covered and and
thousands of cases out there in the news that usually these bank cards are used after somebody's already been killed,
>> right? Um, I think the the thing here is that these attempts were made at multiple different um uh ATMs.
>> And um I think the thought here is that maybe the whoever had possession of this
card and was trying to use it might be getting additional information from Meredith as these attempts progress.
>> Right? >> Meaning you need to you got to try it at this ATM, not that one. It won't work.
Or oh, I must have gave you the wrong pen code. maybe they're able to see that, you know, they didn't type in 1 2
3 4, they typed in 4 321 the second time. >> Um, that that's my guess. >> So that if there was different
locations, if there's different codes being used, that possibly that leads to the fact that she's still alive and
giving this uh person information is what you're saying. >> Yeah. And on January 4th, a there's a
woman at a supermarket parking lot. >> Uh this is in Forsith County, Georgia. A woman at a supermarket parking lot finds
a black lab wandering around. Uh she decides to take the dog to an animal clinic and the dog is chipped. It has
one of those identification chips in it. >> Yeah. >> And the dog is quickly identified as
Ella as Meredith Emerson's dog, the missing 24year-old woman's dog. >> Well, now we have the dog. We have
Meredith's dog and we have this person driving around all over trying to use the ATM cards,
>> right? And so now we can assume that she is just not lost, right? We have we have
more than we have the pieces that we found at Blood Mountain, the pieces of evidence, you know, that were just
dropped by who who knows. And now we have Meredith's dog. So now we can definitely assume that she's just not
lost somewhere, >> right? That she's been taken and she's been held. And even though I I don't
have the distance right in front of me between Blood Mountain and where the dog was found, but from my understanding it
was a considerable distance and you know, yeah, the Meredith has been missing for a few days. So it's not
inconceivable to that the dog could have traveled that, but it's it's very highly
unlikely. >> So they find this dog in the supermarket parking lot. They've identified it as
Meredith Emerson's dog. And around this in the same area is where they are able to trace the phone call that that Gary
Hilton had made earlier to John Taber. And of course they're aware of this phone call because John Taber set up the
trap and they were staking out the the apartment uh or the home trying to to uh >> Right. So now we have this solid
evidence that we believe that she is was abducted. No doubt. And now we have more
solid evidence that hey Gary is our guy. >> Yeah. this uh this weirdo that likes to
pull his teeth out with, you know, he's a that's a he's a amateur dentist uh is is the one that's responsible for this.
>> Yeah. And so we know that and we also have a general area where we think that
that Gary would be or Meredith would be because we found the dog. We got the phone call. So police are going to start
scavenging that area. They're going to start searching that area. And within the vicinity of that phone call and
where the dog was f found, they find some very disturbing items in a dumpster. They find Meredith Emerson's
purse. They find her ID. And they find some bags with bloody clothing in them. There are three bloodied shirts that
they find in these bags. All believed to be Meredith Emerson. >> And I'm just wondering cuz I mean I
hike, but not like, you know, hike hike. I'll go to a local park and go on the trails and stuff like that, but it's
always just, you know, for a couple hours. I don't ever make a day of it. So, I'm just wondering if that maybe
that she packs a bag and that she'd have these clothes with her, you know, maybe
to change afterwards if she wants to go to dinner with friends or whatever, that
she doesn't want to be in her sweaty hiking clothes. >> Or you're going to dress in layers
because it is the winter time. Uh you might get warm as you're hiking and need to take layers off or you may get cold,
have to add layers, or it could rain. you know, these these hikers, you know, I go out on day hikes, but I don't know
what I'm doing. I'm so amateur. I don't bring any belongings or pro provisions with me. Um,
>> you're an amateur hiker, just like Hilton's an amateur dentist. >> That's right. I'm I'm actually taking
the dog for a walk. Um, on this same day on January 4th, this is around 8:00 p.m.
The they start getting some 911 calls. There's at least two calls that come in that are reporting that the person of
interest in the missing Meredith Emerson case has been spotted and he is at a Chevron gas station.
>> We'll get to that phone call right after this quick beer break. And we're back.
Cheers everybody. So, let's play the clip real quick of the 911 phone call. >> Okay, that one. What's the exact
location? I had the the person of interest in that missing woman case is at this uh Chevron gas station on
Ashford Duny. >> Chevron gas station at Ash for Dunwhaty. >> Yeah. >> You said the man is there.
>> The van is here. The dog is here. The red dog. And I saw the man's face and I've been watching the news and I know
it's him. I know it's him. He's got a green uh long sleeve sweatshirt and he's wearing a hat and he's emptying all this
stuff out of his van. Pillows and a blanket and it looks like he's got a sleeping bag right now.
Taking it all to the trash. [Music] >> It's definitely looking around like he's as guilty as sin.
>> Okay, sir. And the dumpster is at the rear of the location. >> Yeah, the dumpster Well, it's kind of
right in the front. It's right by the car wash. >> Okay. I can go take him down if you want. No,
sir. Stay right there. >> Okay. >> Okay. Hold on, sir. >> He looks like he's finishing up. You
guys got to hurry. He's got stuff in bags that he's emptied onto the ground and he's taking load by load
behind the car wash. Another This is the third backpack we've seen him take to the dumpster. Oh, I'm
just shaking. You guys are Is there somebody in route? >> Yes, sir. Here we go. >> Here comes the cops.
>> Yes. You sleep there? >> Yes. >> They got them. >> They got them. >> I mean, they don't have them yet, but
they're getting out. >> They got them now. Two cruisers pulled up on them. Two of the cabs trying to
>> I love that 911 call. That That's fantastic. They get the guy that they're looking for. We have a good Samaritan
that calls in, spots the guy that they're looking for. >> They show up in time. Thank God. The the
the caller sounds a little hesitant like, you know, this guy's going to he's he's almost done dumping his things.
He's going to leave if you don't get here soon. What's going to happen? This guy's going to get get away, right? And
he offers to go and take the dude to take him down. >> That's my that's my favorite part. Well,
he first says, "Hey, you want me to go get him?" >> Yeah. which you know uh you I mean the
the caller doesn't know that that Hilton doesn't have his weapon of choice on him
but you know like we said before Gary Hilton seems like this little tiny wiry guy that so this caller is probably
going I can take him out and then and then also if you just know that that that this uh monster that this heinous
person is responsible for this 24 year old female going missing we don't know if she's alive or whatever then the
adrenaline kicks because you know you want to um help the police uh the law enforcement in any way you can to maybe
save this lady. >> Yeah. Yeah. But the thing here is though the caller and we don't know what items
he has in his van. I mean >> Yeah. And we don't even know if Meredith is in the van,
>> right? And you but you say without his weapon, who knows what form of weapons
he has in the van. So the right call is to tell the person not to to go attack him. Here's the difference. I think
between you and I, I think I would be similar to the caller where he's he's almost like
>> asking for permission like can I go take him down? You know, is that allowed?
Where I think I would ask for permission and offer my services. >> Definitely ask for permission.
>> I think the captain would take him down and then place the phone call. That's
how I see it going down. If you were at the Chevron station that >> it's possible. I mean, but this guy, I
mean, he is wiry, but uh I'll post some pictures on him on the website and then on Instagram, but uh he's a he's a weird
looking dude. >> He's weird looking. And you said earlier fragile, and I think that he he may
appear fragile. >> 61. >> Yeah, he he may appear fragile because of his age, but I also want to keep in
mind here his background, right? This guy is an avid hiker and and when I he he would go out hiking for hours almost
daily and that takes a certain amount of endurance and a certain amount of >> Well, look, man. I sit in a garage and I
talk into a microphone. That's some heavy lifting. >> I think I can take this take this sucker
down. Um, no, but what a weird situation to be in with the caller cuz you know, you're hesitant. Should I take him down?
And then you start you're fearful that this guy is going to get away. And yeah, we have him dumping, you know, he said
three backpacks of whatever. And to me, it's almost like now at this point, Gary
Hilton knows that people are looking for him. >> He he knows he's screwed. You know, his
his name, his face is all over the place. And it seems like he's just trying to dump evidence. Yeah.
>> As much evidence as he can, he'll dump. and he's probably doesn't he's probably
has no clue that law enforcement already has the the evidence that he dumped at the last dumpster.
>> And the thing here too is it doesn't come through real clear in the in the audio clip that we have, but uh you can
hear the caller. He's kind of cheering on the situation like as he sees the cops showing up, you can hear him going
like, "Yes, yes, yes, we're gonna get him." Uh so I I mean I like I like that caller. So, just like you hear the guy
say, Gary Hilton is arrested. Um, and I believe they originally hold him on some
kind of vehicle charge, and we'll we'll go back to that in a little bit. But the
situation is here, they through what they find in his van, what they find uh in the dumpster.
>> Yeah. >> And both dumpsters. >> Yeah. and the items collected at Blood Mountain along with eyewitnesses saying,
you know, yeah, that is the guy that we saw with with Meredith Emer Emerson at the time. Um, that they present Gary
with this evidence and Georgia has the death penalty and very quickly there's a little back and forth and he wants to
strike a deal. You know, he wants them to I will tell you what happened and I will lead you to Meredith's body.
>> Yeah. He's claiming that, you know, he he killed her. >> Yeah. And and but you got to take the
death penalty off of the table. And that's the agreement that they make. He's going to he's going to confess to
it. He's going to lead him to the body. He's going to tell them what happened and he's going to get life in prison
with the possibility of parole, which is seems extremely strange, but that is >> Yeah. How does that work? get life in
prison. >> I don't know if it, you know, because these these different sentences vary
from state to state and I don't know if that's like a mandatory life sentence in Georgia. Maybe they
most of them carry a life uh with the poss possibility of parole. I think all he was requesting was a life sentence
though and for whatever reason the laws that are set up there he he has to get life with the possibility of parole.
>> That's weird. I think if I was the detective, I'd say, "Listen here, you scumbag. Uh, I'll find her and I'm going
to charge you with the death penalty >> just to scare the piss out of him." >> Right?
>> You know, >> so, of course, now we have Gary. He's in custody and he's, you know, we're going
to see this situation. It's very much like you would see in like the movie Seven or whatever where he's he's
shackled. He's in handcuffs. They're going to take him out so he can lead them to her body.
>> Yeah. This gives a little closure to the family >> so they can bury her and you know and
our hearts go out to her family and her friends and it's a tragic situation anytime uh somebody's life is taken away
from them but also being uh this uh vibrant uh smart you know somebody that was really taking on life you know
taking life by the horns and and and wrestling with it and and having such success um and to have that be cut so
short >> well And Meredith Emerson was a winner. You know, we we see this. She she was
somebody that worked hard. She was somebody that studied hard. She led an active life. She had lots of friends,
loved ones. She was a winner. And she was senselessly taken down by a loser. Basically, a guy that was
>> not basically. I mean, I mean, well, >> animal savage loser. But to sum it up,
>> douche canoe, >> you know, in the shortest of terms, he's he's a loser that was out looking to rob
somebody and looking to obtain an ATM card and drain as much money as as possible, right? And in the process
killed, senselessly killed somebody. >> Yeah. And so then the cops are going to just want to know a little bit more
about the actual details of the event and that will happen during the confession. Gary Hilton told
investigators that he targeted the 24year-old woman because because simply that that she was a woman that that he
had come across her or seen her uh on New Year's Day and that they actually hiked for a while together. Um but he
couldn't keep up with her. >> Yeah. So, it's not it's not very clear if uh Hilton went to Blood Mountain to
abduct somebody or rob somebody or even murder somebody in this case. Um or if it was just an opportunity as maybe he
was walking the dog and then Meredith comes along and she is a she is more of a petite girl.
>> So, I think maybe he thought, "Oh, well, with my knife and with my police baton,
uh I can overpower her." >> Yeah. Yeah. And it's um you know, I don't know that I I think it was more an
opportunity situation that he probably was hiking and came across her, but he did say in one interview, this is a
separate interview here, that uh >> he he had said something to the I think he was on the lookout for a potential
victim, >> okay? >> Because he had said that he he was broke. He he had $40 to his name and he
only had a couple days worth of food. And so he knew he was going to have to go out and kill someone. Those are his
exact words. Um so very much an opportunity type killing where he comes across this petite woman like you said.
I think one of her family members had said she was about 120 lb. Um so he sees this this woman that he thinks he can
easily overpower with these weapons. But surprise surprise to him is that Meredith uh not only is she an avid
hiker and uh is in good physical health, but she's also a blue belt and jiu-jitsu, I believe.
>> Yeah. Well, I think se she was familiar with several forms of martial arts. >> Yeah. So, she is going to put up a fight
against Hilton. >> Yeah. He says that when he couldn't keep up with her on the trails that at some
point she had turned back to come back down the trail. You know, probably looking for him or asking him if he
needed any help. You know, being the good person that she is. And when she comes back
>> or she was just done with her hike and she's turning back around. >> When she comes back down the trail, he's
waiting there for her weapons in hand. Um, and immediately he's going to demand her ATM card. And he says that she
immediately went on the defensive. You know, she grabbed the blade. He had a military-style knife. She grabbed the
blade and the baton that Hilton had used to try to attack her. >> Yeah. >> And you know, he says that she has no
she didn't even seem uh she wasn't scared at all to the fact of grabbing the weapons. You know, especially a
knife. You know, you see these situations in a horror film or whatever when when the attacker is coming with a
knife, you know that you've got to gain control of that weapon. Uh >> right. But if that's something you
haven't done multiple times, then obviously you're going, you know, you're not going to know what to do. And so he
quickly realizes that this girl knows what's up. >> Yeah. Yeah. He he says that um she
wouldn't stop fighting him. You know, she tried she she grabs the blade. She grabs
>> hell no. You shouldn't stop fighting. You know, you got this scary, freaky, skinny, stupid dude uh attacking you and
you know, you got to fight for your life. And that's what she was doing. >> She's fighting him and she's yelling at
the same time, which is exactly what you should do. So immediately he realizes that he needs to both gain control of
her and silence her at the same time. >> And I I wonder with her having um Ella,
her dog, with her if that was a hindrance on any, you know, because you know, 61year-old, so it's like you don't
really have to fight him to win. You just have to fight him in order to get free so you can take off running,
>> right? >> And I just wonder if by having a dog that is some kind of hindrance, you
know. >> Well, the fight takes them well off of this trail that they were on and now
they're basically in the woods and fighting. >> Yeah. I think he said at some point
they're kind of like grappling and due to the fighting they actually went down a hill
>> and she actually she actually gets both of his weapons away from him during this
struggle >> and they're down the hill and this is where he you know he needs to gain
control of her and he does this by punching her in the face and he says he blackened both of her eyes possibly
breaking her nose but in the process he had broke his hand doing so in the fight.
>> Well, and also I mean, yeah, she has some training and some martial arts, but
how much actual sparring has she done? I'm assuming not a lot. So, I mean, you know, coming from any fighting
background, you know, once you get punched in the face, it kind of becomes a different thing and you might not be
used to that. And that kind of might have threw her off guard and maybe even maybe possibly uh even knocked her
unconscious on some level. Mhm. >> And I and I believe that had this been a a scheduled fight, let's say, uh where
he has no weapons, I think she would have got the upper hand on him. But I think because she was surprised uh and
didn't expect to be attacked, that might have got the best of her in the end. And
who knows, he he may have gained control of her not just by punching her, but he
may have hit her with the baton by this point, >> right? Um he he says that once he gained
control of her, he was able to calm her down by telling her that he just wanted her credit card and her pen number. And
now that he had control of her, he needed to avoid established trails as he needed to lead her back down the
mountain and with her dog and get to his van, get to his vehicle. And if you're in Meredith's shoes at this point, I
mean, what the heck is going through your head because you just had this uh vicious altercation with this uh nut job
and now you're, you know, he's saying, "Yeah, I I just need your debit card, but
then why do I need to go back to your van?" And I think at this point >> you the wheels are turning on what is
going to happen to me. Is it is it just a simple robbery? Is it just a a you know I say simple but is it just a
robbery? Is it just um assault or now is this more because now I'm in this individual's vehicle. And they the
investigators and law enforcement say that Emerson she bought herself 3 days by giving Hilton the wrong PIN number
for her ATM card. And she told him each time that these numbers are correct. I don't know why it's not working or you
do need to go to a different ATM machine. She's buying her time. >> Well, and a lot of people probably at
this point go, "Well, she fought him at the mountain, right, at Blood Mountain. Then why is she why is she not fighting
anymore?" >> By this point, once they get back to the vehicle, Hilton can just lie to her,
which he I believe he does because I don't believe he has a gun, but he explains to her that I have a gun. Mhm.
>> And by telling her that he has a gun, that, you know, she now basically has to
be submissive to him because she's afraid he's just going to pull a gun and shoot her shoot her.
>> Well, and you're you're right. They they did find several weapons in his vehicle
and he probably used those to keep control of her. One of those items was an air gun, you know, like a BB gun,
right? Um, I don't know because some of these gun BB guns look very much like a toy and sometimes they look very much
like a real gun. Um, >> yeah. And if you have no knowledge of guns, then you would probably just have
to assume. I mean, >> this nut job just attacked you while you're hiking with your dog. And and
this nut job was hiking with his dog as well. So, you know, at this point, you just have to believe whatever he's
saying. >> Yeah. And if you never get a good look at this BB gun, right? You know, if he
if he decides not to show you the full piece, >> um maybe you you believe you have to
believe it's a real gun. >> A lot of those guns you can't really tell from the side. It's really just
when you're looking down the barrel where you would notice that something's off.
>> Yeah. Yeah. Now, remember the phone call that we said was made that he had made
from the diner when he called John Taber to ask him for money. >> Meredith was still alive at this time.
She was being held captive in his van and he had said that he used a, you know, he used like one of those long
chains and had chained her basically around her neck to secure her to the inside of the van. So, she's still alive
out inside the van in the parking lot of this diner while he's inside making this
phone call. >> Yeah, but that's just horrific, you know? I mean, you're chained into this,
you know, shitty Astro van >> and at some point he decides that he's going to have to kill her. this is not
working out for him. He's trying to get the the money from the ATM machines. This is a no-go for him.
>> Well, he says in an interview like it's to him it's common knowledge that if you
abduct somebody, the only way you to not get caught is by murdering this person.
>> Yeah. Yeah. He says it's basic math. If you if you take someone, you either kill
them or you get caught. And at this point when he does when he does kill her, he says that he didn't know that
the police were looking for him. He actually says that on one of the days that he was holding her captive, he had
seen a newspaper and he noticed I I wonder if this was the second day that that he had taken her because remember
the the um >> the friends were not really aware that she was missing until some part on that
second day, >> right? >> So she would have been reported missing on that second day. he would have
already had her for maybe 24 hours at this point. And so this might not have hit the newspapers until technically
that third day that she was held captive, >> right? >> And at some point he says, you know, he
sees a newspaper, there's no mention of Meredith Emerson's name in this newspaper. And he he says to her that
they had a conversation about, you know, they're not even looking for you. Your name's not in the paper. If they were
looking for you, your name would have been in the in the newspaper. Right. But this may have been a taunt,
>> right? But this is just a lonely piece of [ __ ] individual that for some reason,
you know, Mr. always right. Mr. So freaking intelligent, right? That's that's what this guy thinks he is. He
thinks he's the number one salesman of all time. You know, he's he he's God's gift to this green earth. And so this is
his way of going, look, nobody gives a [ __ ] about you. Well, because nobody gave a [ __ ] about you. you know, like
nobody gave a [ __ ] about Gary Hilton because he was a he was a horrible individual. He was not nice to people.
He didn't have friends. He was a loser. And so he was then, you know, reflecting
all his inner turmoil and all the stuff that was going on wrong with him and saying, "Look, nobody's looking for you.
Nobody nobody loves you." >> Yeah. And the other thing here too is back this is another newspaper. This is
on the final day on January 4th when uh the morning that she was still alive. He
had killed her some point that morning. But he had said that he later that day had seen a newspaper and his face was on
the front page. >> Right. >> This is after they're looking for him. They've already identified him as as the
number one person of interest in this missing girl's case, >> right? Which he's probably thinking, how
the hell do they know? But maybe he's also thinking that somebody saw him. why they're hiking.
>> And he says, you know, that um you know, I had I would not have I would not have
killed her had I seen that that newspaper instead of that afternoon if I would have seen it that morning. And
again, it goes back to >> is a [ __ ] liar because he he said earlier, it's simple math. You abduct
somebody, then you kill them. >> But it's in that same interview that he says this is the reason for that. that
had he seen he seen that newspaper that morning, he would have realized he was already caught.
>> And what he was saying was that >> Oh, so he's saying if he would have known he was already caught that he
wouldn't have killed her, >> that he would have released her, >> right? >> And and it because it now you have a
kidnapping charge instead of a murder charge. And and his thought was that, you know, as he said, it's simple math.
When you take someone, you either kill them or you get caught. Now, if you're already caught, meaning they already
know who did this, then you don't kill them. It makes no sense according to him.
>> Yeah. I mean, this guy is just he's a lunatic. I mean, and then the other thing that he did was when he so he
chained her up and basically went back to his van to get um you know um a crowbar or something. But he when he
chained her up to this tree, basically said, "I'm going to let you go." >> Mhm. >> So, you know, poor Meredith actually
thinks that, hey, maybe this is this whole ordeal is over with. Well, well, she actually starts to think at some
point that he has tied me to this tree and or chained me to this tree and and now he's not coming back. You know, this
is this is his way, I guess, of letting me go or just or chaining me to this tree and just walking away,
>> right? And then he comes back and he, you know, he murders her with the the crowbar.
>> Yeah. And of course, he waits till she's not not looking. Um, and he's he's taken
her from the tree and they're walking and he basically from behind he attacks her with that tire iron um, hitting her
over the head. >> But there were several things that Meredith did that if she didn't do Gary
Hilden might have got away with all this. >> Yeah. And it's it's I mean, it's the
stuff of heroes, right? I mean, she defends herself to the point where she's able to take these weapons off of him in
the middle of an attack. Mhm. >> I mean, that that is so incredibly brave of her, first of all, and second of all,
like you said, it leads to his capture. So, if had that baton not been found, that that was found on a trail that the
other hikers were walking up and down and they reported it to law enforcement. And here's the thing,
>> well, and then also once the the once her friends and family report her missing, they then come back and they
find the knife, >> right? >> So, we find multiple weapons. And now at this point, the cops are going, "Hey,
there's something up." So then the cops then present that to the world. And because of because of the cops
presenting that to the world, then we got uh the eyewitness or the the lead from, you know, ex employer of Hilton
and that leads to, you know, people on the lookout for Gary in that area. >> Mhm. Yeah. Yeah. Had that baton not been
found, um I mean, think about this. Cuz all they would have found in that situation would have been the water
bottles and the dog leash, which doesn't immediately I mean, it presents you that
she's probably missing if those items belong to her. But as soon as you hear about a weapon involved and then you see
there were obvious signs of of some kind of struggle, you know, leaves and things
were were disturbed on the ground in this area where they had where they had fought one another for some time
>> and that baton's found and that tips you off that there's we have a big problem
here. I think it wasn't until later um that they had found the uh it was a bayonet or a knife of some form. Uh they
they ended up using like a metal detector because it it was kind of you know as I said the ground was disturbed
and it was underneath leaves and debris and such that it wasn't obvious to anybody in the area. But once they found
those weapons because of her bravery is what what tipped them off and what what sent Gary Hilton on a path to life in
jail. Well, and the other thing though too is that she kept giving him the wrong information on these on the debit
cards or the ATM cards. And again, it's one of those things where if she would uh depending on her actions, he could
have just killed her, you know, and just, you know, just been done with it and then he just drives away.
>> Yeah. He could have been long gone. But the fact that, you know, she basically
kind of keeps up the struggle for, you know, 4 days or 3 days, then it's like it it accumulates into him being caught.
>> Mhm. I want to talk real quickly here about this vehicle charge cuz remember earlier we had said that when he was
when Gary Hilton was picked up at the Chevron gas station, >> right? uh the good Samaritan had called
in. They arrest him because obviously he's a person of interest in this disappearance case and they had found
bloody clothes earlier, but they actually arrest him and I believe they held him on a vehicle charge. And um I'm
not I'm not 100% uh of understanding of this vehicle charge here, but I'll go through it best
that I can. And the reason that I bring it up is because this has been a topic of discussion and a topic of ridicule
regarding law enforcement regarding the Gary Hilton case. >> Right. >> So before before Meredith Emerson was
abducted, Gary Hilton was he had been pulled over and he actually had a warrant out for his arrest at this
point. Basically what had happened was that he had parked his van illegally parked his van on federal property. This
was probably at one of the national forest or state parks that he frequented. And they say that he had a
warrant out for his arrest on this charge. What what is probably most likely was that he was ticketed for a
parking offense and when he failed to pay the ticket or appear in court to contest the ticket, then he received a
bench warrant for his arrest. That's what I'm what I'm guessing anyway. >> Well, it might not have came up in the
system just depending on what area. I mean, he might have had a warrant in a different county. Yeah. Yeah.
>> So, so if he's in, you know, if he's in one county, gets the warrant, the other
county, it might not show up in their records. >> And the reason, yeah, the reason why
there's they've caught a lot of flack for this was because he's pulled over, they run a check on him. For whatever
reason, this doesn't come up in the information. So, of course, the thought here is that if someone had not dropped
the ball, then Meredith Emerson may still be alive. He may have never had the opportunity to abduct her.
>> Yeah. Yeah. But I I don't know. I I think that's uh that's put in a lot of again just the way the system works and
and how they put it in in the system for the officer to check. I mean is it was it something that he missed, you know,
again, who knows? I mean, cuz then they arrest him, he gets out of jail, still goes to Blood Mountain, still finds
Meredith. She's still I I don't think you can put that on that officer >> or goes to the national forest on a
different date finding a different victim. >> Exactly. And then and I think the other
thing too in this case is how hard it would be for the detectives involved. I know that the lead detective, it was his
last case that he's ever done. And um and so you have this, you know, most of these detectives have daughters or have
sisters or whoever, mothers, and and and you you fear for this girl's safety. And
as she's missing, you know, and once you now know that she's not just missing, but possible abduction, now it's we need
to find her before she dies, you know, if she's not already dead yet. And so that the the mind [ __ ] that that would
be as a detective, you know what I mean? >> Well, they're waiting for a call to come
in. I mean, they've done everything that they've could. They've they've put everything out to the public. They
received feedback from somebody that knows this individual that now they have a suspect.
>> Well, but but you're not waiting for a call. That's why I'm saying you're not
because you also have, you know, the license plates of these vehicles, >> right? So that's why I'm saying it's
it's just >> well you're active you're actively investigating. You're following every
lead that you can. But ultimately I'm I'm telling you you interview those detectives in the back of their mind
they're always going we're waiting for a call because we've pushed this stuff out
to the public for good reason. We need as many eyes on this situation as possible. We need somebody to spot this
guy, spot this van, see the dog, make a phone call. You you're not sitting there
on your hands waiting for a phone call. You're actively investigating. But, you know, the best chance of catching up to
this guy is somebody in the public seeing him and making >> Well, yeah. Or, you know, another cop
seeing it, you know, but but the the stress that that would be, >> you know, and then and then to find out
uh when you do catch Held and he says, "Hey, well, look, I I murdered her." M >> I mean and what the detective has to go
through at that point because you know and the detective said too that you know for whatever reason um Meredith
Emerson's parents for some reason on this case they normally hold withhold a lot of evidence from the family or or
hold back a lot of stuff that was going on with the case. They actually presented a lot of this stuff to the
family as it was happening. >> Yeah. I believe he said something to the fact like after he had met her parents,
it was quickly decided between him and the other detectives that they were going to share every bit of information.
>> We can't hold it back. I mean, >> probably their person, you know, the the the good nature and the personality of
her parents is is probably a big part of that. But the other thing, too, is you have a situation here where it's very
it's it's practically obvious from the get-go that this is not a situ a family situation. This is not a family
abduction or a family attack. This is not You don't need to look at those parents or family members as suspects.
>> Yeah. And I but I also I also think that in this situation uh and just the little bit of background
that we know of Gary Hilton at this point, I think it's like you you you're open and honest and forthcoming with
information knowing that the chances of this turning out well is probably not going to happen. I mean, you're hopeful,
but chances are it's not going to turn out well. So, by sharing the information that you're learning with the family,
you're almost preparing them for the worst outcome. >> Yeah. And I think that that's why they
point out that anytime they got a hit on that bank card was there there was a little sign of hope, a little
possibility. And you know, I don't want there, you know, nobody wants there to be more victims or anything like that,
but you know, the the other strange amongst all the other strange and and cruel behavior in this case, but a
strange thing to me was he let the dog go. The dog was just wandering around. And he says later in an interview, he
couldn't bring himself to kill the dog. I mean, these psychopaths, they make little to no sense in most of these
situations. >> Yeah. And uh then the other sad thing I mean kind of the closure of the
closure of the confession and everything is when they do find her body I mean she
is headless. I mean he did decapitate her and he basically makes claims that he did so because it was about
identifying the body. >> Yeah. It was for forensic purposes. He he wanted her not to be identified.
Again, I think this goes back to this idea that he thinks he's going to be able to because even when he sees
himself in the paper and all that stuff, I still think he thought he can outsmart
everybody. >> Yeah. I mean, he's driving around, he's dumping things in different dumpsters,
uh he he was making all the moves to get rid of the evidence, get rid of anything
tying him to Meredith Emerson, and then get out of dodge. And if that's not horrific enough and all these little
tiny events, you know, all these little happen stance events events that happen uh to lead to his capture. Meanwhile, as
there's they're reporting that this girl is missing and possibly abducted, there's other law enforcement agencies
out there going, "Wait, we have similar cases now. Now we have uh we have a missing person. We have bodies that we
found and they're starting to link is, you know, they're starting to question, I guess, is this the work of Gary
Hilton. >> Yeah, you're exactly right. There are cases out there that have not just
similarities, but strong similarities. Almost the exact same mo. Uh people that have gone missing in in National Forest,
people that have been found in National Forest, and they're they're going to use
things that they find in his confession as well as items that they find and evidence they find in his van that may
lead them to other murder charges. >> Yeah. So, the law enforcement at this point is going, you know, we might have
a serial killer on our hands and in custody. That's what we'll dive into tomorrow. Uh, what's the recommended
reading for this week? >> Uh, this week we are recommending the Yoseimity murders by Dennis McDougall.
Um, this is a case that takes place on on the other side of the United States in one of the biggest parks in the
country. Uh, it's a on the trail of murder and mayhem um by Dennis McDougall. It's the Yoseimite murders
and you can pick that up by going to true crimegar.com and check out the recommended page. We have several books
on there as well as some movies and you can use our Amazon banner to pick up any
of your true crime books or movies. And thanks so much for listening. Thanks so much for telling a friend. The support
the last year has been overwhelming and uh we just keep uh you know we we talked
so much. There's so much in this case and there's so much that involves other cases and a couple big profile cases
that are pretty big in the true crime world uh that people think possibly Hilton is linked to and we'll discuss
that tomorrow and uh kind of go into a little bit of backstory with Hilton as well. But again, thanks for listening.
Thanks for telling a friend and much love. >> And until tomorrow, be good, be kind,
and don't litter >> and don't smitter. Heat. Heat. [Music]

National Forest Serial Killer /// Part 1 /// Episode: 77

Part 1 of 2

TrueCrimeGaragecom

They called him the National Forest Serial Killer. He liked to hunt women in the woods. For two years Gary Hilton stalked the backcountry paths of the southern United States. In 2007 he abducted and killed John and Irene Bryant in North Carolina’s Pisgah National Forest. Later that year he attacked and killed Cheryl Dunlap in Florida’s Apalachicola National Forest. Then in 2008 he attacked and killed Meredith Emerson in Georgia’s Chattahoochee National Forest. Gary Hilton is one of the rarest breeds of serial killers waiting until he was in his sixties to start killing, or did he?

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Brief Summary

Meredith Emerson went missing in 2008; Gary Hilton abducted and murdered her, leading to his arrest and confession.

Key points

Person of Interest Identified. Investigators identify Gary Michael Hilton as a person of interest in Meredith's disappearance.
Meredith Emerson Goes Missing. On New Year's Day 2008, 24-year-old Meredith Emerson disappears while hiking with her dog.
Evidence Points to Abduction. Authorities find evidence suggesting Meredith's disappearance was not accidental but an abduction.
Gary Hilton's Threats. Former employer John Taber reveals Hilton's violent threats after a financial dispute.
Meredith's Dog Found. A woman finds a black lab in Forsyth County, identified as Meredith Emerson's missing dog.
911 Call Leads to Arrest. A caller spots the suspect at a gas station, leading to his arrest.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

Meredith Emerson could do anything. She is feisty. She is strong.

Family's hope for Meredith's survival.

5:39WatchSep 23, 2025

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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