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Much like many of the iconic cases that People Magazine Investigates brings forth, the upcoming episode is set to focus on William Bradford Bishop, a former United States Foreign Service officer who has been a fugitive from justice for decades.
Interestingly, this upcoming episode will primarily focus on Kathy Gillcrist, a retired teacher who decided to look for her biological father, only to find that it was the dreaded killer and fugitive, Bradford Bishop. This episode airs on December 23, 2024, at 9 p.m. EST. The synopsis for the episode reads:
"Retired drama teacher Kathy Gillcrist embarks on a journey to find her biological parents. Her worst fears come to fruition when she discovers police want her father for one of the most infamous mass murders in Maryland state history."
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William Bradford Bishop murdered his wife, mother, and three sons in 1976, and has been at large since then. Of course, his whereabouts right now aren't known, but there have been several sightings of the mass murderer over the years. If he's indeed alive today, as Kathy Gilchrist believes, he would be 88.
In 2014, he was removed from the FBI's list of its Ten Most Wanted Fugitives to make room for others. He's still being actively pursued by the FBI and an INTERPOL Red Notice is still in effect.
What did William Bradford Bishop do?
William Bradford Bishop seemingly had a perfect life. He was born in Pasadena, California, and had great success in education, earning an American Studies degree from Yale University and a Master's in Italian from Middlebury College in Vermont. In 1959, he married his high school sweetheart and soon enlisted in the U.S. Army, where he was a respected officer.
In his four years in the army, he worked in military intelligence and learned multiple languages. He went on to work as a foreign service officer with the State Department in the future and even held posts in Italy, Ethiopia and Botswana.
In 1974, he returned to the United States. By then, he had three sons, William, Brenton and Geoffrey. He later moved to Maryland and seemingly led an ordinary life while working as an assistant chief in the Division of Special Activities and Commercial Treaties.
On March 1, 1976, Bishop left early from work. He was allegedly passed off for a promotion that day. While on his way back, he purchased a gasoline can and a sledgehammer. After returning, he killed his entire family, including the three children, aged 5, 10 and 14.
Following this, William Bradford Bishop allegedly drove the bodies 275 miles to Columbia, North Carolina, where he put them in a shallow hole and burned them with gasoline. The smoke was spotted by a forest service worker, Wilma Swain, and it was soon confirmed that it was William Bradford Bishop's family.
He was soon indicted by a grand jury on five counts of first-degree murder and other charges. He was never caught after that, though, but there were reported sightings of the criminal.
The upcoming episode of People Magazine Investigates will cover this case in more detail.
