Gary Michael Hilton was born on November 22, 1946, in Atlanta, Georgia. Hilton was a drifter who was characterized by his unsavory looks of pure evil. He was known to terrorize mountain trails along the eastern United States in Georgia and North Carolina.
On October 21, 2007, an elderly couple in Horse Shoe, North Carolina, John Davis “Jack” Bryant, 80, and Irene Woods Bryant, 84, left for a hike in Pisgah National Forest. If you have ever been to this part of the world, you will know how remote this section of North Carolina is, with no cell service. The couple parked their car, a maroon Ford Escape, at the Yellow Gap Road near U.S. Route 276. After not hearing from the pair in two weeks, family members reported them missing to the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office, which quickly launched an investigation into their disappearance. It was later identified that Mr. Bryant tried to contact 911 on the day they disappeared, but the signal was lost.
On November 10, 2007, the body of a woman on the Barnett Branch trail was found and was later identified as Irene. On February 3, 2008, a hunter discovered a skull in the Nantahala National Forest, along with other body parts. The remains were identified as Jack Bryant.

But Hilton’s killing spree didn’t end in the mountains of North Carolina. Soon, 46-year-old Cheryl Hodges Dunlap disappeared in Crawfordville, Florida, when she failed to appear at her church in Tallahassee. It was extremely strange when Dunlap failed to show, since she was an avid churchgoer. Her family quickly reported her missing. Dunlap’s white Toyota Camry was found abandoned, north of the county line, but Dunlap was nowhere to be seen.
On December 16, 2007, a hunter found a decomposing body in the Apalachicola National Forest of a white woman. DNA confirmed the body found belonged to Cheryl Hodges Dunlap. Her death was classified as a homicide, and authorities announced they were looking for a green truck, which was seen in the area around the time Dunlap disappeared. It was also reported that the man in the vehicle had tried to use her ATM card five times in Tallahassee, withdrawing $700 from her account.
Over the coming days, numerous tips were phoned in, reporting a strange homeless man with a dog, who was driving a green 2001 Chevrolet Astro van, but no arrests were made.
Hilton would find himself back on familiar ground in Georgia. On New Year’s Day 2008, 24-year-old sales manager Meredith Hope Emerson decided to hike the Freeman Trail on Blood Mountain, in Georgia’s Vogel State Park, with her dog. Several witnesses had observed a mysterious older man with his dog in the area following her. On January 3, Emerson’s 1995 Chevrolet Cavalier was found. A day later, on January 4, Emerson’s dog was found safe, wandering through a Kroger parking lot.
The investigation into Emerson revealed that Hilton was a person of interest in Emerson’s disappearance, due to his strange behavior and vicious temper. Roughly five hours after authorities linked Hilton to Emerson, Hilton was arrested, thanks to two phone tips. In exchange for dropping the death penalty against him and assuring that his dog had a safe rehoming, Hilton agreed to reveal where he had disposed of Emerson’s remains.
About a month later, Florida prosecutors charged Hilton with Dunlap’s murder. It was revealed that Hilton had abducted Dunlap from the Leon Sinks Geological Area and held her captive for two days before killing her.
On February 22, 2011, Hilton was officially sentenced to death for the crime for which he now sits.
But in 2012, Hilton was again charged for the murders of Jack and Irene Bryant and was sentenced to an additional life term.
Hilton remains a suspect in several other killings, including that of Judy Smith.
Written By: John G. Clark Jr.