Arrest Made In 1986 Homicide Of MA State Police Colonel's Sister

KINGSTON, MA — Authorities in Massachusetts and North Carolina have made an arrest in the 1986 homicide of 15-year-old Tracy Gilpin, the sister of Colonel Kerry Gilpin who is the head of the Massachusetts State Police.

Massachusetts State Police say Michael Hand, 61, of Troutman, North Carolina, is in custody in North Carolina. Authorities have begun proceedings to bring Hand back to Massachusetts to be prosecuted for the murder, police said.

Gilpin, 15, disappeared from Kingston in 1986 after attending a party. After leaving the party, Gilpin bought cigarettes and used a payphone to call the woman hosting the party to ask for a ride home, according to Masslive. The woman couldn't leave the party and that's the last time anyone heard from her. Her body was found three weeks later in the Myles Standish State Forest.

According to the Plymouth County District Attorney's Office, state troopers recently traveled to North Carolina based on information developed in the investigation that has been ongoing for 32 years.

Hand was arrested March 9 with the assistance of the Troutman, North Carolina police. Hand was charged as a fugitive from justice based on an arrest warrant issued for Gilpin's murder, the DA said. Once Hand is back in Massachusetts, he will be arraigned and charged with murder, according to the DA.

“My family and I would like to thank Plymouth County District Attorney Tim Cruz, the Plymouth County State Police Detective Unit, the Massachusetts State Police Crime Lab, the Kingston and Plymouth Police Departments, police in North Carolina, and all of the investigators who have worked diligently over the last 31 years to solve Tracy’s murder," Kerry Gilpin said in a statement. "We are also extremely grateful to the members of the public who have provided information to investigators. For the past three decades, we have remained hopeful that Tracy’s murderer would be identified. The much-welcomed news of an arrest in the case leaves us cautiously optimistic that justice for Tracy is within reach. My thoughts today are not just with my own family, but also with all the families who have lost loved ones to violence. We will continue to work tirelessly to find justice for all murder victims.”

Photo via Massachusetts State Police