Person of interest' found in missing hiker case

Metro Atlanta

Person of interest' found in missing hiker case

DeKalb police locate Gary Michael Hilton, wanted for questioning in the disappearance of Buford hiker Meredith Emerson.

On Friday, things started to change. DeKalb police detained Gary Michael Hilton at a north DeKalb gas station after receiving two calls at about 7:40 p.m., reporting possible sightings of the "person of interest" in the disappearance of hiker Meredith Emerson.

Aa GBI crime scene unit was sent to the gas station at Johnson Ferry Road and Peachtree Dunwoody Road.

When officers arrived, they found Hilton and confirmed his identity. They also found a dog in Hilton's white van, which was taken to an animal shelter in DeKalb County.

Investigators also examined a trash bin (obscured in photo) at the gas station. It was about 20 feet from where Hilton's van was parked.

WSB-TV reported that officials dusted a pay phone for fingerprints and had removed the receiver from the phone at a Quik Trip on Keith Bridge Road in Cumming.

Then, Emerson's dog Ella was found in the parking lot of Kroger on Freedom Parkway in Cumming. Across the street at a QuikTrip, Emerson's wallet, which held her driver's license, and three blood-stained fleece tops were discovered in a dumpster.

Later that day, Hilton was escorted back to Union County for booking.

Journalists crowd the small bonding entrance hoping for a glimpse of Gary Michael Hilton at the back of the Union County jail just minutes after his arrival.

Union County Jail building on Beasley Street in Blairsville Georgia where Gary Michael Hilton was booked Saturday night after his arrest in DeKalb County.

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On Friday, things started to change. DeKalb police detained Gary Michael Hilton at a north DeKalb gas station after receiving two calls at about 7:40 p.m., reporting possible sightings of the "person of interest" in the disappearance of hiker Meredith Emerson.

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