Gerald Michael Bullinger, who went by Mike, is an Idaho fugitive wanted on three counts of first-degree murder for the June 2017 shooting deaths of his wife, his girlfriend, and his girlfriend’s 14-year-old daughter at a farmhouse near Caldwell, Idaho. He vanished before the bodies were found and has never been located. Investigators presume he died in the Wyoming wilderness, but the warrants remain active and the case is still classified as open.1Idaho News 6. Canyon Sheriff 99% Convinced Triple Murder Suspect Is Dead
Who Mike Bullinger Was
Bullinger was a 60-year-old retired pilot who had worked for Classic Aviation in Utah and lived in Ogden.2ABC4. Police Seeking Ogden Man for Questioning in Idaho Triple Murder He was an avid outdoorsman with a background in survival training.3The Spokesman-Review. Sheriff: Suspect in SW Idaho Triple Killing Is Probably Dead
For roughly two years before the killings, Bullinger kept two parallel relationships in Ogden. One was with his wife of nearly a decade, Cheryl Baker. The other was with Nadja Medley, a 48-year-old widow. According to relatives and friends of both women, neither knew the other existed.4People. Mike Bullinger Murder Wife Girlfriend Idaho House Nadja’s brother-in-law, Mark Medley, later said she “absolutely, positively did not know about Cheryl” and would not have gotten involved with Bullinger had she known he was married.5Idaho News 6. Three Years After Caldwell Triple Homicide, Relative and Sheriff Share New Details
The Three Women He Is Accused of Killing
Cheryl Baker was 56. She had moved to Utah in 1984 and spent 32 years teaching children with hearing impairments at the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind before retiring. She met Bullinger when they were seated together on a flight to Alaska and married him in 2010, at age 50. It was her first marriage.6Ogden Standard-Examiner. Friends Remember Ogden Teacher Cheryl Baker as an Artistic, Kind, Gentle Woman
Nadja Medley, 48, was the widow of Tom Medley, who died in 2014. She had been in a relationship with Bullinger for about two years.7CBS News. Was Pilot Sought in Triple Murder Entangled in Love Triangle Her daughter, Payton Medley, was 14 and described by family as a kind, high-performing student.5Idaho News 6. Three Years After Caldwell Triple Homicide, Relative and Sheriff Share New Details
What Happened at the Caldwell Farmhouse
In early 2017, Bullinger engineered a move from Ogden to a farmhouse at 216 S. Kcid Road near Caldwell, Idaho, taking ownership on May 3, 2017.8The Seattle Times. Triple Homicide Investigation Continues 2 Years Later He had reportedly promised both women a new life at the property. Baker, who co-purchased the home, planned to relocate there after retiring. Nadja and Payton Medley were already living there.9Gephardt Daily. Idaho Triple Homicide A relative later suggested the killings were triggered when the women discovered Bullinger’s deception.10The Salt Lake Tribune. Relative Says Former Utahn May Have Killed His Wife, Girlfriend, and Girlfriend’s Daughter at Idaho Farmhouse
Mark Medley had not heard from Nadja or Payton in months and asked the Canyon County Sheriff’s Office to check on them. On June 19, 2017, deputies arriving at the farmhouse detected a strong smell and found the remains of all three women beneath a tarp inside a shed behind the house. The bodies were badly decomposed, and authorities estimated the women had been dead for 10 to 12 days.4People. Mike Bullinger Murder Wife Girlfriend Idaho House Each victim had been killed by a single gunshot wound to the head.11CNN. Idaho Triple Murder Mystery
Baker was identified first through dental records.12KTVB. Wanted Man’s Wife Identified as Among Triple Homicide Victims Nadja and Payton Medley were identified through DNA, with official confirmation on August 8, 2017.9Gephardt Daily. Idaho Triple Homicide Investigators have not released autopsy results publicly or disclosed whether the murder weapon was recovered.1Idaho News 6. Canyon Sheriff 99% Convinced Triple Murder Suspect Is Dead
The Charges Against Bullinger
Bullinger was initially charged by warrant with failure to report the deaths of three people, a felony carrying a no-bond, nationwide extradition warrant.11CNN. Idaho Triple Murder Mystery The Canyon County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office later filed three counts of first-degree murder.13KUTV. Triple Homicide Victims Identified, Homicide Warrant Issued Authorities describe him as armed and dangerous, and Canyon County Sheriff’s Lt. Chuck Gentry said the evidence against him is “extremely strong.”8The Seattle Times. Triple Homicide Investigation Continues 2 Years Later
Where He Went After the Killings
Bullinger was last seen on June 11, 2017, in Ogden, Utah, about eight days before the bodies were discovered.14Oil City News. Authorities Continue Search, Homicide-Linked Car Found in Wyoming On July 12, 2017, a white 2007 Ford Focus registered to one of the victims was found abandoned at the Pacific Creek Campground in the Bridger-Teton National Forest, a remote area near Moran, Wyoming, close to the boundary of Grand Teton National Park. The vehicle appeared to have been parked there for roughly three weeks.15Idaho News 6. Suspect Vehicle in Caldwell Triple Homicide Discovered in Remote Wyoming Campground
The discovery triggered a multi-agency search involving the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Teton County Sheriff’s Office, the National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service, and Wyoming Fish and Game. Teams used police dogs, cadaver dogs, helicopters, and infrared technology to sweep the terrain, and sections of the Teton Wilderness were temporarily closed to the public.16Wyoming Public Media. Search for Triple Homicide Suspect Continues in Bridger-Teton National Forest In August 2018, roughly 20 investigators from the Greater Idaho Fugitive Task Force and the Teton County Sheriff’s Office returned to the Pacific Creek area on foot, searching for remains, clothing, or a weapon, and found nothing.17Jackson Hole News & Guide. Cops Search Forest for Fugitive Supervisory Deputy U.S. Marshal Pete Thompson said: “We will stop looking for him when he’s found.”18Jackson Hole News & Guide. Bullinger Is Presumed Dead in Bridger-Teton
Presumed Dead, Case Still Open
Canyon County Sheriff Kieran Donahue has said publicly that he is “99 percent” convinced Bullinger is dead, most likely by suicide, exposure, or an animal attack in the Bridger-Teton wilderness. Despite Bullinger’s survival training, Donahue has expressed doubt that anyone could have survived a winter in that terrain. From an evidentiary standpoint, Donahue said the case is “100 percent solved.”3The Spokesman-Review. Sheriff: Suspect in SW Idaho Triple Killing Is Probably Dead
Without a body, there is no official closure. Confirming Bullinger’s death would require recovering remains and matching them against DNA evidence already in investigators’ possession. No formal legal process to declare him dead has been reported, and investigators have maintained that they “rule nothing out” and continue to consider the possibility he is alive.18Jackson Hole News & Guide. Bullinger Is Presumed Dead in Bridger-Teton The three murder warrants remain outstanding, the investigation remains active, and the Canyon County Sheriff’s Office continues to ask anyone with information to come forward.