Hunter Finds Murderer Gary Hilton's Campground

Hunter Finds Murderer Gary Hilton's Campground
September 17, 2009

wsbtv.com

JACKSON, Ga. -- A hunter accidentally found camping supplies, clothes and books belonging to convicted killer Gary Michael Hilton in the Chattahoochee National Forest, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

It happened last Friday at a concealed campsite and the hunter thought the supplies were illegally dumped or stolen. Fannin County Sheriff's Sgt. Justin Turner said it's an area Hilton frequented.

Hilton is serving life in prison for the January 2008 murder of Buford hiker Meredith Emerson, 24. Emerson was reported missing on New Year's Day 2008 when she failed to return from a hiking trip. Her body was found a week later.

Hilton is also awaiting trial in the decapitation of hiker Cheryl Dunlap, of Tallahassee, Fla. Dunlap's body was found Dec. 19, 2007 in the Apalachicola National Forest, southwest of Tallahassee. He fought hard not to be extradicted to Florida. Little creep is afraid of the death penalty, and he's also expressed not wanting to serve time in a federal prison.

SLIDESHOW from wsbtv.com: Hilton's Suspected Victims

Hilton also is suspected in the slayings of an elderly North Carolina couple -- Irene Bryant, 84, and her husband, John Bryant, 80. Officials said the Bryants disappeared while hiking in the Pisgah National Forest near Asheville. Irene Bryant had been beaten to death. John Bryant's skeletal remains were found in Feb. 2008.

The GBI turned over the items to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
Officials have contacted the North Carolina Bureau of Investigation and are investigating whether items can be tied to the Bryants' killings.

I'm adding Cheryl Strother to the list of his possible victims.

Previous Stories from wsbtv.com:
June 18, 2009: Dismembered Body Found; Police Looking At Gary Hilton
June 6, 2008: Gary Hilton Moved To Florida On Murder Charge
May 2, 2008: Killer Hilton Loses Extradition Fight
April 30, 2008: Police: Gary Hilton Not Involved In University Student's Disappearance
April 9, 2008: Gary Hilton: 'I'm A Sociopath'

More articles here:

Hunter finds Gary Hilton's supplies in Georgia forest ...

Hilton items found in concealed Ga. campsite ajc.com

See additional info on Hilton from Glenn Adams, Wolfscratch, here, in the comments section.

Gary Michael Hilton--updates and tidbits.

I'm posting some new comments from an old Gary Hilton Timeline post, mostly because it is interesting news, and because I truly appreciate Susie's question and Wolfscratch's intelligence, detective abilities and diligence has kept Georgia officials looking and searching, not just for Meredith, but for all those who have entered the woods and never returned. If anyone has information on the below mentioned Cheryl Strother, please share...I'm not finding anything about her. Regards, Janet.

Susie said...
In 1974 a classmate of mine was murdered. She was found bound to a tree, raped? and "cut up alot". Her murder was never solved. Her name was CHERYL LYNN STROTHER. She was just 16 when she was murdered. Her body was found in the woods around FT. Knox, Ky. The similarities between the circumstances of Cheryl's murder and Hilton's MO are striking. Where did he recieve his (military) basic training? Has he ever been known to be in the FT. Knox area? Cheryl's death has haunted me, and many of our classmates, for many years! Thanks for any imput...

Wolfscratch said...
Susie, Very sorry about your friend Cheryl Lynn Strother. A tragic end to a precious life.

Link: http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?s=%2010dcc7305cfbacaeef7a8156ac19c86e&t=58543. Gary Hilton said to the jailers at the Dawson County, GA. jail, "if you are so intelligent, why were you caught." His response, "They haven't caught me since I was 14 years old!"

Please notify the LE that is working the cold case to compare the dna, now that it is available. GMH is being investigated even before birth. All media has been silenced; local & national. GMH's IQ is 150+. LE thought of him as a dried up old drifter. He was/is cagey, calculating, deflective, has no common mode of operation: from Levi Fradi; 11 year old boy to Irene Bryant 84 years old, man woman, boy, black, white, only a preference 120# 25 year old female. I am confident that he had associates.

I went to Blood Mtn., Blairsville, GA, today and placed the marble memorial for Meredith Hope Emerson, that is shown on http://glennindawson.blogspot.com/ at the Mtn Crossings Trading Post: Herbert Reece Trail, where she was abducted.

Glenn Adams said...
Hello Prairie Chicken, hope you are doing fine. Wolfscratch finally received a visit from LE. They took many of the items to the lab for testing....(finally! see glenn's above blog to see the beautiful memorial he made for her, and articles of clothing and miscellaneous items found in an area believed to be frequented by Gary Hilton.)

Glenn Adams said...
The following is a possible victim map of Hilton’s. It is only preliminary. I am confident that his victim total will exceed 150+, and those are only the ones that are deceased. Many were suspected,indicted, and encarcerated. LE didn't know his identity til 09/07...: may they rest in peace…http://tinyurl.com/2aja6w Wolfscratch (Glenn, can't get the address to open.)

Janet said...
Susie--I have been trying to find out information on her since your post and could find nothing, then Glenn posted the webslueth site, so thank you, both. I'll put something together for her...

Janet said...
Glenn, good to hear from you! I think what you have done with Merediths memorial is wonderful. Did you take any photo's? If so, could you post one or two? ...I'm glad LE is finally listening. I'll be anxious to hear what comes of it. Keep in touch, please. And thanks for the Cheryl link! You have a big heart. I hope you have a great year.

Glenn Adams said...
...Gained alot of info from the LE visit. Ottis Toole's name was brought up (two months before the 'Adam Walsh', case was closed), IQ of GMH, what he looked for when selecting victims...Of all the items; backpack, clothing (man, woman, child) hiking clothes, garrote, that I have found backtracking GMH, the agent was only interested in one item: A silver cross on a necklace. This was with the other items, but was mine. I wore it while dowsing for protection. Satan Worshipers, don't wear silver...Wolfscratch

Glenn Adams said...
Correction on my last statement:Satan Worshipers, don't wear Gold..Wolfscratch

Glenn Adams said...
Burn delayed for area near fugitive's armed camp

Jon Ostendorff

• JOstendorff@CITIZEN-TIMES.com

• published December 10, 2008 12:15 am

BREVARD – A Henderson County fugitive had equipment to make booby traps in a camp where federal investigators allegedly found gunpowder and guns, a U.S. Forest Service spokesman said Tuesday. John Joseph Hiles' camp in the Pink Beds area of Pisgah National Forest was a quarter-mile from Yellow Gap Road. The area is one of the most popular in the region for hiking and mountain biking. It is also popular with hunters this time of year.

The government had planned to burn hundreds of acres in the area on Tuesday to clear underbrush to aid in searching for more ammunition and explosives. The Forest Service postponed the burn because of the rain.

Hiles, 45, was camping in the woods after failing to appear in court on charges of misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia, felony manufacturing marijuana and maintaining a vehicle for selling drugs.

Investigators charged him with growing 15 marijuana plans in his 1984 Ford Ranger pickup truck in May, according to an arrest warrant. He had potting soil, cups and fertilizer in the truck to use in the growing operation, according to the court papers.

Hiles was being held in Henderson County with bond set at $20,500. He is scheduled for a court appearance on Friday. The court papers listed his address as “general delivery,” which is often used by law enforcement when a person doesn't have a home address. Officials with the Henderson County Sheriff's Office did not return messages Tuesday seeking more details.

U.S. Forest Service agents and deputies from the Transylvania County Sheriff's Office captured Hiles on Nov. 21. He had placed a classified advertisement looking for a ride out of the state.

Forest Service agent responded to the ad and met Hiles in the forest, where he was arrested. The Forest Service closed the area and posted signs warning the public about the possibility of explosives in the woods after finding the camp, Forest Service spokesman Terry Seyden said.

The area remains closed. Safety measures include a new metal gate at the fire road leading to the camp off Yellow Gap Road, warning signs and increased law enforcement patrols. News of the camp and Hiles arrest surprised some forest users.“It's bizarre,” said Van Rogers, president of the Pisgah Area Southern Off-road Bicycle Association, who was mountain biking in the Pink Beds area two weeks ago. “I could have been potentially riding around some of that stuff.”

The camp wasn't near a maintained trial, Seyden said. He said authorities found equipment for making bullets in addition to guns and gunpowder at the camp. The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is investigating, Seyden said.

A message left with the agency seeking more details wasn't returned Tuesday.Federal authorities don't typically discuss ongoing investigations beyond details available in public court documents.

Hiles had not been charged with a federal crime. Seyden said he did not know how many guns, how much gunpowder or what materials that could be used for making bobby traps were stashed in the woods.Those details are not public because of the federal investigation, he said.He also said it is unclear whether any more munitions would be found.“We don't have hard evidence that there is anything out there,” he said.

He said the burn will cover a large area — up to 400 acres — to make sure firefighters setting and controlling the blaze are safe if hidden ammunition or power explodes. The burn area is much larger than the actual camp area as a safety precaution, Seyden said.

Yellow Gap Road is the same place where hiker Irene Bryant was killed last year. Georgia drifter Gary Michael Hilton is the only suspect in her death.Federal authorities in North Carolina are expected to charge him after a state court in Florida tries him for the murder of a woman on national forest land there. The case in Florida is still a year away, prosecutors have said.

Autopsy Reveals John Bryant Shot Gary Michael Hilton, confessed murderer in the slaying and beheading murder of Meredeth Emerson, is also a suspect in the murders of John Bryant and his wife Irene.

John and Irene were an elderly couple who were hiking in the mountains in North Carolina when they disappeared last October, 2007. Irene was found dead soon after the disappearance. John's body was found by a hunter in February, 2008.

The site where Mr. Bryant’s body was discovered appeared to be an illegal dumping ground. An autopsy report revealed John Bryant died from a gunshot to his head after being taken from Pisgah National Forest where he had been hiking with his wife.

Medical examiners used Mr. Bryant’s pacemaker to identify his body. The autopsy reported the presence of unfired but partially opened red shotgun shells containing birdshot and a piece of wire, small fragments of paper-like material and vegetation.

Now that a firearm has come into play, the case may hold more precedence to be tried federally. The Bryants ATM card was used the day after they disappeared, which is one of Hilton's MO's. Hilton also has been indicted in the death of 46-year-old Cheryl Hodges Dunlap.

http://www.blueridgenow.com/article/20080517/NEWS/666736887/0/OPINION*******************************************************This description of items found near Mr. John Bryant's Remains, has always haunted me: The autopsy reported the presence of unfired but partially opened red shotgun shells containing birdshot and a piece of wire, small fragments of paper-like material and vegetation. Now that a firearm has come into play, the case may hold more precedence to be tried federally.Wolfscratch

Glenn Adams said...
Hilton Case Material Released Soon Save

Jan 9, 2009

Reporter: Heather Biance Material from the case between the State of Florida versus Gary Hilton may soon be released to the public. Leon County Circuit Judge Terry Lewis filed an order Friday, that will allow a limited amount of information of case related material to be released to the public to insure a fair trial to both the state and the Defendant. The released information will be filed into the Clerk of the Circuit Courts once there's been a final approval. Hilton is accused of murdering Crawfordville woman, Cheryl Dunlap and faces the death penalty if convicted.*****************************Finally, a little 'Sunshine' from the Sunshine State..Wolfscratch

Nonprofit established in remembrance of slain hiker

Right: Meredith Emerson
Below: Ella
Below right: a trail on Blood Mountain

Published on: 06/12/08 by
http://www.ajc.com/

Friends, family and co-workers of Meredith Emerson have established a nonprofit organization to promote causes important to the 24-year-old Buford woman who was abducted while hiking and later killed.

Right to Hike Inc. will kick off its program June 25 with a metro-wide fund raiser involving 40 Applebee's locations. The restaurants are allowing 15 percent of the total bills of participating diners that day to go to the non-profit organization.

The organization initially is focusing on three objectives:

• To provide hikers and outposts with GPS devices that allow emergency personnel to locate hikers in distress;

• To provide micro-chipping for domesticated animals at organization events, and

• To help students study abroad in France, as Emerson did, through the Meredith Hope Emerson Memorial Award for Study Abroad, which was created by the University of Georgia.

"We want to ensure other hikers can feel safe while doing what they love by giving them access to Satellite Personal Outdoor Trackers, known as SPOTs, so they can send messages for help and be located if lost," said Julia Karrenbauer, Emerson's co-worker and close friend. Karrenbauer is a board member for Right to Hike Inc.

The micro-chipping initiative evolved from Emerson's love for her Lab-mix, Ella, who was with Emerson hiking, but later found near a grocery store in Cumming.

"Meredith's dog Ella's micro-chip played a key role in helping us find her, and it's so important to make sure all pets have one in the event they're ever lost," Karrenbauer said.
Anyone wishing to participate in the fund raiser may print out an invitation for Applebee's at www.righttohikeinc.com. An invitation is required for the money to be routed to the non-profit organization.

Emerson was abducted from a trail in Vogel State Park, held captive for three days and then killed in Dawson Forest Wildlife Management Area, five miles southwest of Dawsonville.

Authorities charged Gary Michael Hilton with the crimes. He later pleaded guilty and was sentenced in Georgia to life in prison. Hilton is currently in Florida, facing charges for a similar slaying there.

Hilton 'prime suspect' in several deaths

Death penalty still an option in Emerson case, prosecutor says

By CHRISTIAN BOONE, TIM EBERLY

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution — Charged in the killing of Meredith Emerson, Cheryl Dunlap, John and Irene Bryant and being eyeballed hard for the murder of Patrice Endres, law enforcement suspects drifter Gary Michael Hilton might be involved in a murderous spree spanning three states within the last three months. I think for much longer than that.

Hilton, 61, in jail for allegedly kidnapping and killing Buford hiker Meredith Emerson now faces charges in the slaying of Cheryl Hodges Dunlap, 46, of Crawfordville, Fla. in a National Forest near Tallahassee. A masked person suspected in Dunlap's slaying used her ATM card on three occasions following her disappearance on Dec. 1. Leon County Sheriff's Office Sgt. Rob Reisinger said during a news conference that deputies can place Hilton in the area at the time of Dunlap's disappearance.

Avid hikers John, 79, and Irene Bryant, 84, were last seen alive on Oct. 20 in the Pisgah National Forest in North Carolina near the borders of Georgia and South Carolina. Her body was found bludgeoned three weeks later; John Bryant found dead days later. Transylvania County (N.C.) Sheriff David Mahoney said there are many similarities in the killings of Bryant and Emerson.

In each case -- including Cheryl Dunlap's slaying -- the victims' ATM cards were used. Emerson, Dunlap and Irene Bryant were all found in state or national forests. In the two most recent slayings, the bodies have been disposed of in gruesome fashion. Georgia authorities said that Emerson was decapitated, and reports have circulated around Tallahassee that Dunlap's head and hands were severed from her body. Local officials won't confirm it, but Maj. Mike Wood of the Leon County Sheriff's Office told the Tallahassee Democrat there are similarities in the cases that deputies weren't at "liberty to discuss."

Yet another unsolved slaying in which the victim was dismembered has investigators in LaGrange wondering whether Hilton may be involved in yet another killing, though officials are quick to dismiss any known connection. Still, there are "obvious coincidences," said Capt. Mike Nixon, chief investigator for the Troup County Sheriff's Department.

On Dec. 6, a passing motorist discovered the body of a woman -- still unidentified -- missing hands, feet and head. The mutilated body was in five black plastic garbage bags along Stitcher Road in LaGrange, which is west of Macon near the Alabama line.

Although an attempt was made to burn the bags, some evidence was recovered, including a Domino's Pizza coupon from Chamblee. The address on Hilton's arrest warrant for Emerson's kidnapping is on Clairmont Road in Chamblee. Nixon said investigators believe the woman was killed in metro Atlanta.

"We're looking into Hilton. We're looking into everything," he said.

Rumors have spread in LaGrange and Tallahassee that the slayings are connected, as each corpse was dismembered and the bodies were discovered within nine days of each other. Nixon said he's heard the speculation but so far nothing links the two cases. And as of now, he said, Hilton is not a suspect in the LaGrange slaying.

Meanwhile, Forsyth County officials say they are investigating whether Hilton may have been involved in the slaying of Cumming beauty salon owner Patrice Endres, whose body was found a little more than two years ago in Dawson State Forest, about a mile from where Emerson's body was located Monday.

Hilton is accused of abducting and bludgeoning to death Emerson, 24, who disappeared while hiking with her dog in the North Georgia mountains on New Year's Day. He is charged with kidnapping with bodily injury in Union County, where Emerson disappeared in Vogel State Park. Hilton also faces a murder charge in Dawson County, where Emerson's body was found Monday and where police say she was killed.

Dawson County prosecutor Lee Darragh said Wednesday he would not comment on whether he will seek the death penalty for Hilton. Hilton was denied bail. Hilton's court-appointed attorney, Rob McNeill, said he could not discuss the case's details, but said Hilton "realizes the gravity of the situation." At the hearing Wednesday in Dawson County, Hilton was made aware of the murder charge against him. He did not enter a plea.

Hilton never spoke aloud, but nodded when Chief Magistrate Judge Johnny Holtzclaw asked whether his date of birth was Nov. 22, 1946. Upon entering court from a side door, a handcuffed Hilton, wearing an orange jumpsuit and holding a pair of glasses, chatted softly with his defense attorney. The hearing lasted five minutes. It did not appear that any Hilton family members were present.

None of Emerson's relatives came either, said Peggy Bailey, a family spokeswoman. Through Bailey, Meredith Emerson's parents, Susan and Dave Emerson, told the Journal-Constitution that Hilton was not worth "our time and energy." "Our focus is on Meredith," the couple said in a statement given Bailey. The family was busy Wednesday preparing for Emerson's memorial service at 2 p.m. Friday at Central Presbyterian Church in Athens. Another memorial service is planned for sometime later in Emerson's hometown of Longmont, Colo., just outside Denver.

Darragh, district attorney for the Northeastern Judicial Circuit, which includes Dawson County, told reporters after Hilton's hearing that he planned to take the case to the grand jury in early March. Asked about the death penalty, Darragh has also said he was not a part of any deal made with Hilton to take the death penalty off the table.

On Tuesday, Union County District Attorney Stan Gunter told The Associated Press authorities had agreed not to seek the ultimate punishment against Hilton if he led them to Emerson's body, which he did. Vernon Keenan, director of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, said the Union County County district attorney's office discussed the deal with the Emerson family. Steven Bright of the Southern Center for Human Rights said reneging on the promise, even if it was made by another jurisdiction, would likely raise legal complications for prosecutors.

"I would think if an agent of the state made a representation that induced the defendant [to give up evidence], I would think he would be entitled to [get] the bargain," Bright said. "We will have a hard time having a credible justice system if the representatives of the state promise people something and then are free to disregard it." Jack Martin, an experienced Georgia death penalty defense attorney, said that going back on the deal could also mean losing the ability to use certain evidence against Hilton — including the location of the slaying and the body.

"As a general matter, if there was a promise not to prosecute and he gave information on that promise, that information cannot, should not, be used in any trial," Martin said. "The evidence regarding the body would not be admissible, which would complicate the death penalty prosecution."

An autopsy performed by the GBI on Tuesday found Emerson suffered fatal injuries to the head before she was decapitated. The autopsy also revealed Emerson was alive for three days after she disappeared, but the GBI has not released any information about what happened to her during that time. Emerson's body was delivered to a funeral home in Athens, GBI spokesman John Bankhead said.

Jeff Smith, of Sandy Springs, was one of thousands of people who have reported seeing Hilton moving around North Georgia and apparently living out of his van. Smith's encounter with Hilton provides insight into the lifestyle Hilton was living in the months leading up to the alleged slaying.

Smith said he found a makeshift camp Hilton set up on Oct. 26 at the entrance to a privately leased woodland area off Lake Alataoona in Cherokee County. The camp is supposed to be accessible only to members of a hunting club which leases the land, but Smith said Hilton's white van was parked on the dirt road blocking the gate.

When Smith approached the van, trash was strewn on the ground, several sleeping bags were in the mud and a stash of plastic storage containers was stacked head-high and covered with plastic. Hilton told Smith he was merely stopping for a rest on his way to the Cohutta Wilderness, east of Dalton. The story didn't make sense to Smith, who noted that their location was 8 miles off I-75 and 2 miles inside a remote, heavily forested area.

"Immediately I thought wait a minute, this guy is hiding from something," Smith said.
Smith advised Hilton he was trespassing, then walked away after Hilton became belligerent and called the police.

A Cherokee County sheriff's deputy who responded to the call videotaped a 20-minute exchange with Hilton, who admitted having a baton with him. Cherokee County Sheriff Roger Garrison said the deputy ran a check on Hilton through federal and state criminal databases before letting him go. There were no outstanding warrants, Garrison said. After Emerson's disappearance, Garrison said detectives searched the wooded area in Cherokee County where Hilton was camping, but they found nothing suspicious.

Hilton pleads guilty, gets life for killing hiker

ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Gary Michael Hilton pleaded guilty Thursday to killing hiker Meredith Emerson, and was sentenced to life in prison.

Hilton, 61, wore an orange jumpsuit and bulletproof vest as he sat somberly through the sentencing.
He was charged with kidnapping with intent to harm and malice murder in Emerson's January 4 death.
The 24-year-old University of Georgia graduate disappeared on New Year's Day while on a hike in the North Georgia mountains with her dog.

Emerson's parents gave emotional statements in court.

"I feel that no punishment for Mr. Hilton is too great," said her father, David Emerson. "I only pray that he suffers immensely for his heinous acts."

Susan Emerson, the victim's mother, said she was not sorry that prosecutors took the death penalty off the table.
"I feel like he should stay alive and slowly rot," she said. "As far as I am concerned, there is no such thing as justice in this case. Nothing will bring our daughter back."

Dr. Kris Sperry, the state's chief medical examiner, concluded Emerson died of blunt force trauma to the head and was decapitated after death. Witnesses said they saw Emerson on Georgia's Blood Mountain with Hilton.

Days later, Hilton led authorities to her body, reportedly in a deal to avoid the death penalty.

"Anyone's emotional reaction would have appropriately be that this defendant deserved the penalty of death," said Lee Darragh, Hall County District Attorney at a news conference following Hilton's plea.

But after much deliberation, research and consultation with other prosecutors, Darragh decided a life sentence "in practical terms" is a "death penalty in and of itself."

"The most appropriate course was to have this defendant take responsibility for the death of Meredith Emerson through his guilty plea today," he explained.

Hilton would not be eligible for parole until he is 91 years old. "He will most likely die in prison and most certainly never see the light of day again," said Darragh.

Emerson's family agrees with the sentence, a family spokeswoman said.
"Today is the last day of a very long month, but January on its last day is a safer place than January on its first," Peggy Bailey told reporters. "There are sources of joy that will lead our families through the suffering and on to healing."

Investigators also suspect Hilton in the October slaying of Irene Bryant and the presumed death of her husband, John, in Transylvania County, North Carolina, said Sheriff David Mahoney. Authorities haven't specified what evidence they have.

Hilton also is the suspect in the death of Cheryl Dunlap, 46, whose body was found in December in Apalachicola National Forest, southwest of Tallahassee, Florida, according to authorities.

Gary Michael Hilton Evil on Earth

Hilton Suspected In Fourth Hiker's Disappearance
BRYSON CITY, N.C. --6:30 pm EST January 15, 2008-- The man charged in the beating death of a Georgia hiker is being looked at in the 2005 disappearance of a Florida woman who was hiking in western North Carolina.
Investigators said 26-year-old Rossana Miliani was last in Bryson City on December 7th, 2005.
A store clerk from Bryson City recently told a private investigator that Miliani came into her store with a white man in his 60s and appeared nervous when they bought a backpack. The clerk contacted private investigator Steve Siske after reading about Miliani on the second anniversary of her disappearance.
Siske said he noticed case similarities when 61-year-old Gary Michael Hilton was arrested for the murder of 24-year-old Meredith Emerson, whose body was found in a national forest in the north Georgia mountains.
A spokeswoman with the State Bureau of Investigation confirmed Monday that agents are "considering the possibility of a connection," but declined further comment.



Hilton Considered "Prime Suspect" In Fl. Woman's Murder
The Leon County, Florida, sheriff's office said the man charged with murder in the death of 24-year-old hiker Meredith Emerson can be considered a prime suspect in the death of Cheryl Hodges Dunlap.
Her body was found December 19 in the Apalachicola National Forest, southwest of Tallahassee. Sheriff's Major Mike Wood said today that authorities have confirmed that Gary Michael Hilton was in the area at the time of Dunlap's disappearance.
A state law enforcement source told WSB-TV that Dunlap also was decapitated, as was Emerson.



(upper right, Rossana Miliani; right, Cheryl Dunlap; below John and Irene Bryant)









Hilton Named Suspect In NC Murder
Investigators in North Carolina named Gary Hilton a suspect in the abductions of two hikers, both found bludgeoned to death in separate locations. The body of Irene Bryant, 84, was found about a month after she and her husband disappeared while hiking in the Pisgah National Forest near Asheville. She had been beaten to death. John Bryant, 80, found in Macon County Feb 2.
"At this point, I do consider Hilton a suspect,” said Transylvania County Sheriff David Mahoney. “We are following up on all information regarding possible sightings of Hilton. We have not released any other information regarding Hilton at this point.”





NC Sheriff: Hilton Responsible In NC Case Of Missing Hikers, Too
AP February 1, 2008
ASHEVILLE, N.C. -- Authorities said there is "no question" that a man who pleaded guilty to murdering a hiker in Georgia is responsible for the deaths of two hikers in North Carolina.
Transylvania County Sheriff David Mahoney said Friday that North Carolina authorities tried to interview 61-year-old Gary Michael Hilton in Georgia on Thursday, the same day he pleaded to killing Meredith Emerson in the mountains of northern Georgia.
Mahoney said Hilton declined to talk and asked for an attorney.
Authorities have named Hilton a suspect in the beating death of 84-year-old Irene Bryant, who was found dead near a hiking trail in western North Carolina. Her 80-year-old husband, John Bryant, who was found dead February 2 in the Nantahala National Forest in Macon County, North Carolina.

Meredith Emerson--Autopsy

Autopsy: Hiker Was Alive for 3 Days

Reported by: Jon Shirek
Reported by: Kevin Rowson
Reported by: Blair Meeks
Reported by: Keith Whitney
Last Modified: 1/9/2008

An autopsy performed on the body of slain hiker Meredith Emerson showed she was alive for three days before she was beaten to death and her body decapitated, the GBI said Tuesday.

There are also new charges and a new jail for the man accused of killing her, Gary Hilton, 61, of DeKalb County.Emerson's body was found in Dawson County.

According to murder warrants issued on Tuesday there, Emerson was killed three days after she disappeared from a hiking trail in Union County. The warrants said she was then brutally murdered.

Just before 3 p.m. Tuesday, Gary Hilton arrived at his new jail cell in Dawson County where he will face a more serious charge of murder. As he was escorted into the jail, he asked a sheriff deputy if the jail was nice.

"At approximately 1:30 today, an arrest warrant was issued for Mr. Gary Hilton," said Dawson County Sheriff Billy Carlisle. "Mr. Hilton is being charged with one count of murder of Meredith Emerson.

"Investigators said they believe Emerson was killed in Dawson County. Her body was found in a heavily wooded area of the Dawson Forest on Monday at about 7 p.m. Gary Hilton had given investigators an indication where her body would be. After an autopsy was completed at the GBI's Decatur lab, the results were announced in Dawson County.

"Dr. Kris Sperry, the chief medical examiner for the state of Georgia, has determined that Meredith Emerson died of blunt force trauma to the head," said GBI Agent-in-charge John Cagle. "Dr. Sperry indicated that after Ms. Emerson received the lethal injuries she was decapitated.

"Meredith Emerson disappeared from a hiking trail near Vogel State Park in Union County on New Year's Day. "The contents of the warrant allege that the crime occurred on January the 4th, 2008," said District Attorney Lee Darragh.

That means Meredith Emerson was alive for three days after she was abducted. The GBI would not detail any more specifics of the case. Gary Hilton will face a judge for the first time in Dawson County on Wednesday at 1 p.m.Emerson's body was found in the Dawson Forest -- about 24,000 acres of land near Dawsonville, north of the Forsyth County line. The park is near the Cumming gas station where Emerson's bloody clothes and ID were found.

Emerson's Family Releases Statement of ThanksOn Tuesday afternoon, Emerson's family released a statement expressing their thanks to all who helped search for Meredith over the past week, and they also announced a memorial service for her.

The GBI informed Meredith Emerson's family about today's autopsy results, and is giving the family updates on the ongoing investigation. Meredith's parents, Dave and Susan Emerson, released a statement on Tuesday afternoon.

They had been actively helping in the search and the investigation. The Emersons asked their close friend and Meredith's godmother, Peggy Bailey, who lives in Athens, to speak for them one more time.

"The family of Meredith Emerson would like to extend their heartfelt thanks and appreciation to the following good people: Union County and Dawson County Sheriff's departments, fire and rescue departments, Georgia Bureau of Investigation, and the 60-plus agencies involved in the search and eventual recovery of Meredith. The family would also like to express their appreciation in the professionalism and compassion of the local and national media and thank them again for helping to facilitate getting information out about Meredith as well as helping the world learn to know her, and learn to love her, as we always have and always will. We would also like to thank the untold number of friends and volunteers and family who helped search and support all of us at this tragic and troubling time," Bailey read.

The memorial service for Meredith Emerson will be on Friday, at Central Presbyterian Church on Alps Road in Athens, at 2 p.m. The family asks that those who wish to honor Meredith can do so by contributing to their local animal rescue shelters.

Other States Eying Hilton in Other Murders

Florida has now joined North Carolina in requesting details of the Meredith Emerson murder to see if her killer could be responsible for more murders.

There are at least three unsolved murders detectives are focusing on. There is a growing concern that the killer of Meredith Emerson may be a serial killer who has left a trail of tragedy in at least three states.

John and Irene Bryant -- hikers who traveled the world well into their 80s -- were last seen in the hills of North Carolina's Pisgah National Forest.Their red SUV was parked not far from where the body of Irene was later found, beaten to death. John Bryant's body has never been found, despite agonizing searches by his family and other volunteers. The suspect in their murder was seen at a Tennessee ATM, using their debit card and wearing John's jacket. The jacket may be the clue that links their killer with the suspect in the Emerson murder.

"They can make determinations between the Meredith emerson case and the case that they're working in North Carolina," said GBI Director Vernon Keenan. "There's no conclusion been made; no linkage been made, but they were very interested in the case that we're working in Union County.

"Investigators in Florida will now follow in the footsteps of those from North Carolina, visiting the GBI in Georgia. They want to compare the suspect in the murder of 46-year-old Cheryl Dunlap last month in the Apalachicola Forest with Hilton as well. Dunlap's body was found by hunters in the woods, two weeks after the suspect used her credit card to try and get cash at a bank.

There are other cases in Georgia that may bear looking into as well -- notably, the murders of Patrice Endres and Levi Frady, though the GBI has indicated that they are not yet going over similarities there.

Meredith Emerson--Body found

Body of missing Georgia hiker found
Accused kidnapper leads authorities to her body in mountainous area

Associated Press

updated 3:34 a.m. CT, Tues., Jan. 8, 2008

BLAIRSVILLE, Ga. - A drifter charged with kidnapping a 24-year-old hiker led authorities to her body Monday in the mountains of northern Georgia, investigators said, hours after a judge denied him bond in her New Year’s Day disappearance.

Authorities were also examining whether the death and the disappearance of two elderly hikers in October in North Carolina were related to the Georgia case.

Gary Michael Hilton, 61, showed investigators the spot where Meredith Emerson’s body lay, said John Cagle, an agent with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s Field Division.

Residents reported seeing Hilton’s van in the Dawson Forest Management Area, where the body was found, miles from where Emerson was last seen, Cagle said. A search had been planned there before Hilton told authorities where to look, he said.

The wiry, grizzled Hilton was well known in the area, often seen with his dog, Dandy, and police-style baton, Union County Sheriff Scott Stephens said. Hilton was the last person seen on the trail with Emerson, and investigators had gotten countless calls since identifying him as a person of interest in her disappearance, Stephens said.

Hilton is charged with kidnapping with intent of bodily injury, and more charges could be added, Enotah Judicial District Attorney Stan Gunter said.

Hilton’s attorney, Neil Smith, did not enter a plea on Hilton’s behalf during the 11-minute appearance before Union County Magistrate Judge Johnie M. Garmon.

Shackled at the hands and feet, Hilton thanked Smith, a public defender who was assigned to the case early in an attempt to encourage Hilton’s cooperation in the search for Emerson.
Investigators said Hilton, who was detained Friday, had tried to use Emerson’s credit card, according to his arrest warrant.

Three bloody fleece tops and a bloodstained piece of a car’s seat belt were found in a trash bin beside a convenience store where Hilton had used a pay phone, the warrant stated. Hilton had tried to vacuum and wash portions of his 2001 Chevrolet Astro van, which was found without the rear seat belt, according to the document.

Authorities said they are exploring whether the disappearance of a couple in North Carolina is related to that of Emerson. John and Irene Bryant, both in their 80s, had gone hiking in the western North Carolina mountains in October.

Irene Bryant’s body was found in November; authorities say she was killed with a blow to the head. Her husband remains missing but is presumed to have been killed.
Sheriff David Mahoney of North Carolina’s Transylvania County agreed that there are similarities “that we’re certainly wanting to look more closely at — nothing that we can release at this point.”

Mahoney did note that authorities in both cases were looking for someone wearing a yellow jacket, and that an ATM transaction was made with the Bryants’ card about 50 miles from the area of the Georgia investigation.

Emerson was last seen hiking with her dog in Vogel State Park, about 90 miles north of Atlanta. The dog was found 50 miles away Friday in a grocery store parking lot in Cumming, a suburb north of Atlanta, and identified using an implanted microchip.

Vogel is one of Georgia’s oldest and most popular state parks. The area includes a segment of the Appalachian Trail, the hiking route that stretches from Georgia to Maine.

Meredith Emerson--'Person of Interest', Missing Hiker's Dog Found

January 4, 2008

DECATUR, Ga. -- The man police were lookig to question in the case of a missing Gwinnett County hiker was found Friday.

Gary Michael Hilton, 60, was found at a Chevron gas station on Ashford-Dunwoody Road in DeKalb County.

Police also located Emerson's dog, "Emma", a 1-year-old black Labrador retriever, at a Kroger parking lot at the intersection of Georgia highways 306 and 400 in Forsyth County, roughly 60 miles from the search site.

Police want to learn what Hilton knows about the disappearance of Meredith Emerson, 24, who was last seen Tuesday hiking on Blood Mountain in Union County.

Friends said Emerson went hiking with "Emma" on Tuesday. Her 1995 Chevrolet Cavalier was found abandoned Wednesday at the base of Blood Mountain.
Emerson, 24, is formerly of Longmont, Colo., and recently became a resident of Buford, Ga., in suburban Atlanta.

Her roommate, Julia Karrenbauer of Buford, said as many as 100 friends and family members have come to the park to aid in the search. Emerson's father, Dave Emerson of Longmont, Colo., headed to the mountain trails Friday with investigators and rescue workers to help look for his daughter.

"They're frightened, scared and we're all very hopeful," Karrenbauer said of Emerson's parents. "We're all trying to stay really positive here. It's been a really long three days."

Karrenbauer said Emerson is an experienced hiker with a blue belt in martial arts.
The search for Emerson will resume Saturday.

4th Night Falls on Search For Hiker

Reported by: Jon Shirek
Reported by: Julie Wolfe
1/4/2008

A fourth, frigid night has fallen on the north Georgia mountains with no sign of the missing hiker from Gwinnett County, Meredith Emerson, or of the "person of interest" who the GBI said was seen on the trail with the 24-year-old University of Georgia graduate. On Friday, the search expanded.

Search and rescue teams expanded their search area, far beyond Blood Mountain, where Emerson and her dog were last seen Tuesday afternoon hiking, and talking on the trail with what authorities described as a "person of interest," a man they said was Gary Michael Hilton, 60, of DeKalb County.

.

The search now encompasses 400 square miles of rugged, north Georgia terrain. Fifteen teams of search and rescue experts rappelled into ravines and caves all day Friday -- places that the volunteer searchers can not reach -- while helicopters with infrared sensors continued to scan from above for body heat below, for some sign of Emerson and her dog Ella.

"These are the guys that know these woods, and they know what they're looking for," said Emerson's roommate, Julia Karrenbauer. "It does comfort us, the fact that the best of the best are up there today, working for her."The best of the best includes the Gwinnett County Sheriff's Rapid Response Team and their canines that Major Carl Sims commands. They spent the entire night in a grid search of Blood Mountain and beyond."

"As you can imagine, time is of the essence, to get as much as we can get done as quick as we can get done, especially with the temperatures as brutal as they were up there," said Sims.

Search and rescue teams spent a frigid Thursday night on Blood Mountain scouring trails, ravines, and caves for any sign of a missing University of Georgia graduate. "We have nothing right now," Union County investigator Kimberly Verdone admitted Friday on the third day of the search for Meredith Emerson.

Emerson, an avid hiker, was last seen on New Year's Day, talking to a weathered and toothless man who has been identified as Hilton. He is being sought for questioning by authorities."All we have is that they were seen on the trail together. He was the last person that was with her along with her dog," Verdone said at a Friday morning news conference. "DeKalb County is looking for this subject."

As many as 60 searchers from area police and sheriff's departments, some with K-9 units, worked through the night as temperatures dipped to 9 degrees. By daybreak Friday, 15 search teams made up of law enforcement, fire and EMS personnel were working to cover an area of nearly 254,000 acres. A Georgia State Patrol helicopter with infrared took to the air for another day.Volunteers picked up armloads of fliers to post throughout north Georgia and western North Carolina.

Volunteers who wanted to help were asked to call Union County authorities first to be placed on a list. They were not being allowed on the trails, but were asked to post fliers in the area instead. Her friends have started a Web site where they post updates, http://www.helpfindmeredith.com/ Emerson left a note for her roommate to indicate she went hiking on Tuesday. When she failed to return home, friends reported her missing and, on Wednesday, found her car in a parking lot near a Blood Mountain trail.

"I'm still in shock every now and then. I get a free moment and I think about it and I expect to wake up and go , 'This isn't happening,'" roommate Julia Karrenbaum said.

While the fate of Emerson is not known, her godmother, speaking again Friday, said her parents remain hopeful. She also pleaded for Hilton to come forward and talk to authorities."I hope that if he realized that this would be helpful, that his heart would be softened and turned to coming forward with information for Meredith, for those of us that love her. We need him to come forward," said Peggy Bailey."Please, please if you could and I speak to him and anyone who can contact him, if you’ve been hesitant, please don’t be hesitant...have the courage to come forward. We need you and Dave and Susan [Emerson's parents] need you.

"Emerson's parents are grateful that so many strangers have joined family and friends to find her."Susan and Dave have said that, more than anything else, has been hugely comforting to them and supportive. And it's what keeps it together for them," said Meredith Emerson's godmother, Peggy Bailey. "That means that people are caring and they know that Meredith will be found, with that kind of support -- and that's huge."

Hilton was identified as a person of interest after someone wrote down the license tag of his white van. Investigator Verdone did not know what prompted that person to become suspicious enough to take notes on his van."That is something that we’re checking into," she said. "It’s not that he is a suspect...we just want to know when was the last time he saw her." A GBI official added later Friday, "We have confirmed that he was there."

GBI agents said they now have evidence -- proof -- that the person of interest, Hilton, is definitely the man hikers saw with a dog, talking with Emerson as she hiked the trail with her dog Tuesday. Investigators said they believe it was a chance encounter, and that Emerson did not know Hilton.

Authorities said Hilton had a large, reddish-colored dog with him that answered to the name of "Dandy." Hilton owns two vehicles, both registered in DeKalb County: a white 1996 Chevrolet Astro Van with plate number 76APZ, and a white 2001 Chevrolet Astro Van with license plate number AFQ1310.Hilton was wearing a large yellow backpack. For now, officials said they are holding out hope that Emerson is on the mountain, holed up in a cave where she is staying warm with her dog.

"We are still in search and rescue mode. We are holding that she’s out there and that she’s hidden somewhere where she’s staying warm and that Ella is with her.

"Verdone said the search includes the help of the Georgia Emergency Management Agency, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Natural Resources, the Lumpkin County Sheriff's Office, the Union County Sheriff's Office, the Union County Fire Department, the Union County Emergency Management Agency, along with scours of volunteers and a K-9 search team from North Carolina, and the GSP helicopter.

The search will continue through Friday night, with canines who do their work well in the dark. Anyone with information on Hilton is asked to call the Union County Sheriff's Office at 706-439-6038.

http://www.11alive.com/news/article_news.aspx?storyid=109029

Meredith Emerson--Person of Interest Named in Hiker Case

Reported By: Julie Wolfe
Reported by: Jon Shirek
Reported by: Duffie Dixon
Last Modified: 1/4/2008 6:58:25 PM

Officials have named a person of interest in the search for missing hiker Meredith Emerson, and are searching for Gary Michael Hilton, 60.

According to investigators, Hilton owns two vehicles, both registered in DeKalb County: a white 1996 Chevrolet Astro Van with plate number 76APZ, and a white 2001 Chevrolet Astro Van with license plate number AFQ1310.

Officials said they want to know what Hilton said to Emerson when he met her on the Appalachian Trail.

Hilton was described as a silver-haired white man weighing about 160 pounds. He stands about 5 feet, 10 inches tall with bad or no teeth.

Hilton was seen several times talking with Meredith Emerson, who went hiking with her black Labrador on New Year's Day. Emerson was reported missing on Wednesday.

"This man was seen with her on multiple occasions during that day," said Union County investigator Kimberly Verdone.Authorities said Hilton had a large, reddish-colored dog with him that answered to the name of "Dandy."

Emerson and the man's dogs ran up the mountains near Dahlonega together, and the two were seen following their dogs Tuesday, witnesses told authorities.

The man in question was spotted again Wednesday morning.

The witnesses said he also had with him a large, yellow backpack that looked like it had enough gear for days. Verdone said witnesses described the man as, "Weathered and no teeth and looked as if he had been hiking for quite from time."

Anyone with information on Hilton is asked to call the Union County Sheriff's Office at 706-439-6038. Six people, including Meredith's boyfriend, searched a specific area of the trail with dogs on Thursday evening.

Authorities believe Hilton was the man, who on Freeman Trail on Blood Mountain, was talking to Meredith Emerson the day she and her dog Ella disappeared.

"Mr. Hilton is an individual who is believed to have had contact with Ms. Emerson along the hiking trails in Vogel State Park. Mr. Hilton also has the dog we've identified as a red large dog, with the name of Dandy," said Kimberly Verdone of the Union County Sheriff's Office.

That almost matches up exactly to what another hiker on that same day told folks at a store at the trailhead.

He found what family members now think is key evidence."Before he go to the parking lot, he saw there was a pile of items. The glasses, the baton, two water bottles, a dog leash and the dog treats.

And at that point, he felt really uneasy about the situation. He recalled the girl hiking with the dog on the leash; recalled the gentleman with the baton and the holster," said store employee Jennifer Moorse.

"Meredith's middle name is Hope. And that's exactly what the Lord gives us for her, so we're talking about Meredith in the present tense, and we will find her, and she will safely come home to us," said family spokesperson -- and Meredith's godmother -- Peggy Bailey.

With the possibility of foul play, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation joined in the search for Emerson and the man Thursday. Add to that, a team of eight from Gwinnett County search-and-rescue, one fire search-and-rescue team, and a Georgia State Patrol helicopter using an infrared device are taking part in the search.

"At this time we are assembling teams with experience and non-experience," Verdone said at a late morning news conference.

Emerson's father is also reported to be taking part in the search. Thursday afternoon, authorities said the search would be suspended at dusk Thursday evening and resume again Friday morning if Emerson is not found.

Emerson was believed to be hiking the Freeman Trail, which measures six miles in length.

Earlier Thursday, investigator Verdone said five or six people had come forward with information about Emerson.

One of them, a former police officer, told a shop owner that after passing Emerson and her dog, he spotted a suspicious man who was carrying a police baton. "He seemed a bit uneasy but he wasn't completely in an emergency state," said Jennifer Moorse.

The ex-cop said that on the way back from his hike, he became more concerned when he found the baton along with some of Emerson's belongings near the trail." At that point, he felt really uneasy about the situation," said Moorse. The ex-cop returned to the scene to help investigators pinpoint the area where he saw Emerson, as well as the suspicious man.

'Pure Tough' Whether she met with foul play or foul weather, Emerson was prepared for both, friends said. She was an experienced hiker and accomplished martial arts student described by her self-defense instructor as "120 pounds of pure tough."

"I've seen her take down men twice her size," said Ken Blumreich. After reporting her missing, hundreds of friends and relatives traveled to Blood Mountain in Union County where they found her snow-covered car in a trail parking lot. Authorities have confirmed that a water bottle and leash found on the mountain and turned into a local shop owner belong to Emerson.

A short time after her car was found, three teams started what would be six-mile search in the woods in Union County where Emerson took her dog on a hike. They ended the ground search at 6:30 p.m. as sub-zero degree temperatures moved into the region.

Volunteer searchers gathered by the dozens to help but were initially asked to stay clear of the mountain so that their body heat was not mistaken for Emerson's. "We are doing every effort to find Meredith," Verdone said, adding that members of the Appalachian Trail Club have been contacted for any information about caves or other areas where Emerson could have survived the night.

Family spokesperson Peggy Bailey, Emerson's godmother, said Emerson's parents flew in from Colorado Wednesday night. "Her parents, as you can imagine, are devastated and frightened but they are strong people, as is Meredith," said Bailey. "She is smart, level-headed.

"Emerson, a University of Georgia graduate, just started a new job and was excited about taking on a leadership role there, Bailey said. She was also skilled at hiking.

"Meredith Emerson could do anything. She is feisty. She is strong. She is tiny and petite, 120 pounds, [but] she can run those mountains. She’s a strong person. If anyone can survive this she can."

http://www.11alive.com/news/article_news.aspx?storyid=108980