Victor Manuel Gerena has been on the FBI’s Most Wanted list longer than anyone — 30 years! — but in all likelihood he’s either deceased or living a semi-quality life in Cuba, so the chances of apprehension may not be that great. William Bradford Bishop just got added to the list, but he’s 77 and likely somewhere in Europe, so again, apprehension may be a long-shot. (But then again, both Whitey Bulger and El Chapo have been caught in the past three or so years, so never say never.)
Robert William Fisher — case details here — has been on the 10 Most Wanted list since June of 2002; so in about two months, he’ll be at the 12-year mark. He essentially hasn’t been seen since 2001, a few days after murdering his entire family and then blowing up their house in Scottsdale, AZ. The book on him from law enforcement has always been that he’s an avid outdoorsman and could be living in the mountains somewhere or in a trailer-type situation; in fact, there’s been over 1,000 leads on him since he made the top 10 list — and in 2012, authorities thought he might have been living in Payson, AZ (the same spot where he left the family car and dog after the murders, back in 2001). So far, though, he hasn’t been apprehended.
Fisher would only be about 53 right now, making him one of the younger bucks on the FBI’s list, and he’s described as “physically fit.” While he is thought to have ties to New Mexico and Florida, authorities seem to present the idea that he’s somewhere in the American Southwest — by contrast, most of the rest of the list (including Jason Derek Brown, whose crime also took place in Phoenix) is likely living in other countries right now. (Fisher, of course, could be living abroad as well. There’s also several theories about his potential suicide, but no one has ever found a body.)
There was a potential tie in 2012 to this stalker of remote Utah cabins, but that didn’t appear to ultimately be a viable lead. Here are the basic physical descriptions:
The 6-foot, 190-pound fugitive, has a gold crown on his upper left bicuspid tooth. He sometimes walks with an exaggerated erect posture because of back problems. He also chews tobacco.
One of the craziest things about the FBI list — has, and always will be — is how easy it is to avoid detection if you basically keep your head down and don’t contact loved ones. This was Fisher’s first crime (that we know of, at least). He had reputable jobs beforehand. There’s nothing to indicate he knew how to enter an underground world/network of fake IDs, etc. If he’s still alive and running, he just knows how to hide in plain sight (or, you know, the mountains of northern Arizona). The good news for Phoenix residents/America/true crime followers is that being on the 10 Most Wanted list has about a 90 percent capture rate, so Fisher may get caught eventually.
If you want even deeper context on Fisher’s story, go here or here. Here’s the trailer for that Where is Fisher? film, which regularly gets knocked as being rushed (but containing some new information and theories):
Fisher does have sisters and a semi-troubled past, as outlined here.
And the FBI hasn’t given up at all, even releasing a podcast this month with the lead case agent. Here’s an article about said lead case agent, Robert/Bob Caldwell, and one key element that anyone in the AZ/NM/FL area should note:
“If he’s in a relationship right now, he’s controlling that woman,” Caldwell said. “He’s going to be dictating everything that happens, he’s very arrogant, very cocky. The characteristics of his aren’t going to change and hopefully that will draw people to him and take a little closer look at him and say, ‘Oh yeah, I recognize that guy now.'”
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