Page 112 - Meredith News Today

Last terrifying moments. as it turns out, her family and friends were right. she fought hard for her life. once again, dennis murphy. >> in your decades of law enforcement agent, have you ever had a session of interviews like this one? >> no. no, he was very straightforward and was very nonchalant about the whole thing. >> will you get down to the point where -- like meredith, i had $40, money, and several days food. so i had to kill somebody in that period of time. >> after his initial confessi...

Sure enough, it was ella. but where was her owner, meredith? now events were moving quickly. right away came another tip. >> we get a call from a female acquaintance of hilton stating she had just hung up the phone. he had called her and wanted money. she commented that she -- she said, dont you know the worlds looking for you? and he hung up. >> hilton called from a pay phone at a convenience store near where merediths dog had turned up. you have a living pet, a missing owner and a phone somewh...

From blood mountain to these woods called dawson forest, about 30 miles to the south. it was from around here that hilton had made those phone calls to his ex-boss. remember, by then, merediths bloody clothing had been retrieved from a dumpster, not a good sign at all. but as long as there was the most remote chance she was still alive, the search was going to continue. but lead agent john kagel knew these vast wood lands very well, and he knew the odds of finding needles in hay stacks. he saw...

>> if i wanted to ensure that no one would associate the dog with her, i would have killed the dog. but theres no way i could do that. >> he was toofrp much of a sofo kill the dog, he explained it. but poor meredith, ellas owner didnt have a chance. >> i just told you once youve done it, youre either going to kill her or get caught. theres no other solution. if that sounds cold and cruel, yeah, it was. >> in his unbelievably cold recollection of the crime, hilton said he told meredith he was goi...

On the chalk board, taking ella. went hiking. not where, not when, not when ill be back. it wasnt really anything out of the ordinary. >> meredith, like roomy julia, was a dog person. she doted on ella, her black lab mix since finding her at a rescue shelter. >> she had two dogs growing up and she wanted one of her own. she talked about it and researched what she wanted and definitely wanted to rescue a dog, and finally found one, went out, loved her and brought her home. it really was the light...

And then the next day, 80 miles. these were attempts, where no money was taken. >> which suggests what? >> suggested that meredith wouldnt give him the right p.i.n. >> which also suggests maybe shes still alive. >> thats right. >> investigators had been able to trace the phone gary hilton used earlier to call his old boss john tabor who set that trap for him. that call was made from a restaurant 50 miles from blood mountain. hilton it seemed was moving south toward atlanta. metro pd s.w.a.t. con...

Given him her pin numbers back on blood mountain. did meredith suspect it would be all over for her if she gave him the correct numbers? in any case, shed given him bad information. >> did the pin work? >> shes still telling me, its going to work, its going to work. must be -- >> hilton next tried to use merediths cards at a bank 50 miles south in gainesville, georgia. again, no dice. he made camp that night with his captive in a remote spot in the forest. the next morning hilton attempted to us...

Everything he says, but that part i believe. theres no doubt that she fought and, you know, maybe its a little bit that kind of gives huh- you a little smirk to know she almost got him. she gave him a run for his money. im sure he thought maybe i should have chosen somebody else. >> eventually, hilton wore meredith down. by then they were way off the main trail. hilton tied his captive to a tree, and then doubled back to that site where hed been stripped of his weapons. the bay net was gone, los...

Detectives swarmed over the filthy astro van and inventoried his possessions looking for any clue to merediths fate. a gbi spokesman updated the media. >> its a missing persons investigation right now, and thats how were pursuing it. an important key might be any knowledge that mr. hilton has. >> take me inside your situation room when you get the news that atlantas got him. >> were very pleased with the fact that now we have this man, but we cant lose sight of the fact we dont have meredith yet...

Meredith emerson, but what about those other cases in the national forest? a woman in florida. the elderly couple in north carolina. >> he would not talk about anybody to us other than meredith. >> because you have to wonder when the switch was thrown in this man. >> i no hknow, i know. >> how many decades does this go back. >> do people wake up when theyre 61 and start to do these crimes the way he did them? and, you know, i would think not. >> meredith emerson went missing new years day 2008. ...