- So, just listen to me.
It's more important to live in the now
(radio chatter)
and live like we're gonna die tomorrow
than live like we have 20 years ahead of us,
or however many years.
- [Narrator] What is up, Ewu Crew?
Today, we're covering the unbelievable case
of Gerald Michael Bullinger.
- Behind me is exactly where investigators say
they discovered three dead bodies.
- [Narrator] Monday, June 19, 2017.
Deputies in Caldwell, Idaho are performing a welfare check
after a concerned relative of Gerald Michael Bullinger,
60, reached out to them, saying he hadn't been heard from
for an extended period of time.
Upon entering the property, deputies discovered three bodies
hidden inside the shed near the farmhouse.
- [Nadja] It's where the chickens live.
Hay shed.
- [Narrator] All three were severely decomposed
due to the summer heat,
meaning that any positive identification
would require dental records and DNA samples,
a time-consuming process.
They were also covered in plastic and lined up,
seemingly moved after death
and thick shrubbery hid them from view.
Inside of the property, officers discovered
several deceased animals and removed all surviving animals
as an investigation commenced.
- [Nadja] Dogs are the only thing that's grazing now.
- [Narrator] Dogs, snakes, and birds had all been located
on the property, starving and disheveled.
Though, one of the dogs had reportedly been shot.
- Seriously, it's cool.
Get a good grip on it, there you go.
Other hand support that hand just like that.
Cock the trigger, put your finger in the trigger guard
and shoot it, 'kay?
Aim at the target.
Don't think about it, just pull the trigger.
- [Narrator] Bullinger had recently purchased
the farmhouse in Caldwell with his wife of 10 years,
56-year-old Cheryl Baker.
Cheryl had recently retired from her job as an art teacher
and was staying in Ogden, Utah to sell the family home
before joining him, giving him time to perform some repairs
and to decorate the property for her.
The pair were used to spending time apart,
but former coworkers spoke of Cheryl's enthusiasm
regarding the move.
She was excited to retire and spend time
surrounded by nature with her husband.
The pair were both avid hikers and loved the outdoors.
Rafting though the Grand Canyon
and taking mules up the mountains of Ogden
were just some of their many adventures.
And they were frequently described as peas in a pod
by those closest to them.
The time they did get together only reinforced this.
Sharing the same interests and religious beliefs.
However, all was not as it seemed.
Instead of performing repairs, Bullinger had moved
his girlfriend of two years and her daughter
into the property along with their vast array of pets.
Nadja Medley, 48, and her daughter Payton, 14,
had no idea that Gerald had a wife.
To this day, nobody knows what his plan was.
Why he decided to move his mistress
into the property when he knew his wife
would be joining him before long.
Though, many believe this dilemma may have been
what caused the murders.
A friend of Nadja described his reluctance to stay overnight
and a lack of intimacy, which may have prompted him
to move her into the farmhouse.
Believing he had a few weeks before his wife arrived,
it may have given him time to come up with a solution,
though his plan to move their horses onto the property
casts doubt on that theory.
Maybe he hoped that Cheryl would allow them to stay.
But, we may never know.
As a contract pilot, spending weeks away from his wife
was never unusual.
And she was content with the time they did get together.
Often, only a few days between jobs.
Some wonder if this is how he was able
to cultivate his affair.
Secretly spending time with his girlfriend,
but returning often enough that his wife
didn't become suspicious.
Nadja was described as somebody that would never have grown
so close to a married man.
She had a strong moral compass and a daughter to protect.
After a string of losses,
she was likely extremely protective of her family
and trust took time.
So when she found someone so honest
and willing to love her daughter like his own,
it wasn't much of a surprise that she eventually
ended up in a relationship with him.
Before the murders, Nadja had enthusiastically posted
on Facebook about her move to Caldwell with her daughter,
supposedly set to happen when "Mike"
was stable in his new job.
Still healing from the death of her husband
and Payton's father in mid-2014
and the loss of a child around the same time,
this felt like a fresh start for the family.
A new place for them to forge their own path
away from those memories.
Mike had taught her daughter how to shoot
and the pair had established an especially strong bond,
one that had Payton calling him "dad" before long.
And the ability to live together
would solidify the relationship further.
Payton, like any teenager, was active on social media
and frequently uploaded videos.
- Hello, everybody!
It's me, Payton, and I am back for another new video.
With my mom!
- Hi.
- [Narrator] Most were with her mother,
but one of them shows her playfighting with Bullinger.
- One,
two,
three!
(both laughing)
Uh-oh.
- [Narrator] Rolling around in the leaves and laughing,
there wasn't any sort of awkwardness.
Payton was just as happy with her mother.
Taking her and her mother on frequent outings,
it wasn't hard to see why Nadja was so willing
to move with Mike.
- So we are on the second day of our trip.
Pretty cool.
We just got back from white water rafting.
- [Narrator] These outings could explain
the financial struggles that plagued both of his lives.
Incapable of helping Nadja with rent when she struggled,
and reportedly unable to afford presents
for previous wives despite his hefty paycheck.
The parallels don't end there, though.
Both women spoke of the shed on the property.
- [Nadja] This is where the chickens live.
Hay shed.
You can't even see the house 'cause of all the trees.
- [Narrator] Cheryl, planning to turn it into an art studio,
seeming to foreshadow the eventual discovery
of their bodies.
An eerie coincidence, but a coincidence nonetheless.
Relatives of both women say that neither
had any idea that the other existed,
leading to the first and most widely-believed theory
in the case.
Cheryl had decided to surprise her husband
shortly after her retirement
by making the five-hour drive to Caldwell from Ogden.
Something that her brother only became aware of
after a friend told him of the visit.
She wasn't expected to travel up until weeks later
when their house was sold.
But clearly, something prompted her to make the journey.
Upon reaching the property, it's thought that Bullinger
realized his two worlds were set to collide.
Surprised in a completely different way
by his wife's appearance.
Opinion becomes divided here as to who was shot first,
some believing that Nadja and Payton
were the first to lose their lives
to prevent Cheryl from discovering his infidelity.
Others feel that Cheryl was shot first.
With brother Brian Baker struggling to come up with answers,
only able to wonder if perhaps she was shot and killed
after a plan to use the money from their Ogden house
to leave her for his mistress had gone awry.
The financial struggles he'd had support this theory.
He could get a fresh start with that money.
As Cheryl was the only owner of the house,
perhaps he had hopes to inherit that money
after she was dead.
Maybe Nadja or Payton had heard something
they weren't supposed to.
Perhaps the dog refused to stop barking,
and the shot he fired at it prompted the investigation,
or it tried to defend his victims.
The only evidence from that night
comes in the form of a text message
sent from his wife's phone,
urging a friend to look after the dogs
as she didn't know if she'd be coming back to Ogden.
We may never know who died first
or why Bullinger moved the bodies to the shed.
Neighbors claim to have heard screams but no gunshots,
though nobody reported them until after
the bodies were discovered.
With houses as close as just 25 feet,
the fact that this crime went unnoticed for almost two weeks
confuses people to this day.
Still, even these theories raise questions.
What could cause a seemingly loving husband
to turn into a murderer overnight?
- (laughing) And you know it's gonna happen.
- [Nadja] Well, is it gonna happen here or what?
- "Or what," you hear that?
(both laughing)
(Gerald laughs)
- [Narrator] Or, was it something that had been escalating
for decades beneath the mask that he wore around others,
less sudden than it seemed?
Had there been warning signs
that he'd left buried in the past?
1978.
Salt Lake Temple, Utah.
Jackie Garcia marries Mike Bullinger.
What should have been one of the happiest days of her life
became the start of a decade of infidelity and abuse.
In interviews, she said she knew it was a mistake
the second they returned from their honeymoon.
Before long, arguments grew physical,
and she feared for her life.
During arguments, he would hit her to silence her
verbally berating her and tearing her down.
The abuse was in full swing
for the first two to three years of their marriage.
And despite her pleas to the church
and even her own parents, nobody seemed willing to help her.
Seeking out couples counseling and therapy,
nobody seemed willing or able to believe
that Bullinger could be so violent.
Sent to therapy for batterers,
he never truly improved or changed his behavior,
and was enabled by those around him.
After learning of the deaths, Garcia wondered if perhaps
proper intervention could've prevented the deaths.
A lot was wrong with the systems designed
to protect those in abusive marriages within the church,
enabling his abuse instead of challenging it.
Denied access to temple divorce through the church,
she was trapped until he decided to leave her
for his mistress.
Even after their divorce, his violence was able to continue.
Speaking to the Idaho statesman,
Jackie admits that one of their two sons
had been spanked by Bullinger at one point,
despite her ban on any kind of physical discipline.
Her sole custody may have been the only thing
protecting her children from further abuse.
But his willingness to sit his sons down and tell them
that his behavior wasn't their mother's business
was concerning.
Still, aside from her, she'd never heard of him
becoming physically violent with any of his other wives.
By the time they divorced in 1988 due to the affair,
it's thought that Mike had surrendered his membership
or been ex-communicated from the Mormon church.
It's unclear as to whether he used religion
to manipulate his wives and girlfriends.
And while nothing is known about his second wife,
the subject of his 1988 affair,
Garcia believed he always became whatever
somebody needed him to be.
To Jackie Garcia, that was a fellow Ladder-Day Saint,
a dimpled freshman at her university.
To Cheryl Baker, a man who loved the outdoors
and held a life membership at the Hindu temple with her,
to Nadja Medley, a fellow atheist and someone
who shared her compassion and adoration for animals.
And finally, to Payton.
Someone worthy of being called "dad."
Someone that treated both her and her mother like royalty
that she could trust with her life.
Bullinger was able to play all of those roles,
but his sociopathy and infidelity followed him
throughout all of those relationships regardless.
He was perfect to both Cheryl and Nadja.
(laughing)
- And you know it's gonna happen.
- [Nadja] Well, is it gonna happen here, or what?
- "Or what," you hear that?
(laughing)
(Gerald chuckles)
- [Narrator] Seemingly happy in both relationships,
but even that wasn't enough for him to remain loyal.
Though little is known about his second wife,
Bullinger is believed to have both married
and split from her because of his infidelity.
This leading him to marry Cheryl.
Unlike his prior wives, Cheryl was different.
Creative enough to create her own wedding dress
with little assistance,
but incredibly similar to Nadja in retrospect.
All of his relationships followed one common route.
Often, starting and ending with infidelity,
unaware until the relationship was over,
able to compartmentalize and move between relationships
without hesitation, it may have been this
that allowed him to escape from police.
That sociopathy is what leads Jackie to wonder
if perhaps he'd found another victim.
Contrary to what authorities believe,
she has stated in numerous interviews
that she doesn't believe he'd of taken his own life,
too egotistical and prideful to consider the option.
Multiple friends and families of his victims
echo this statement.
More likely to manipulate another women into taking him
than to take his own life over the guilt
that many believe he's incapable of feeling.
Mike hasn't been seen since 2017.
His car found abandoned beside an isolated campground
in July that year.
Nobody has been able to locate him.
Though authorities strongly believe
that he passed away shortly after the crime,
this, like many other parts of the case,
is also disputed.
With extensive survival skills,
some believe that he may have made his way
as far as the east cost, or left the country entirely.
The almost 10-day head start he had
may have allowed him to fall off the grid
and start a new life with another unsuspecting victim.
With coverage remaining local for the most part,
it wouldn't have been hard for him to fly under the radar.
His ability to adapt to what was wanted or needed
provided a perfect alibi.
Reported sightings place him in various locations.
One, supposedly placing him near Mesa Falls
with other unidentified men.
This brings into question whether or not
he was acting alone, and whether he had help
in evading authorities for as long as he has.
Though they may not have been involved in the murders,
they could easy have enabled his escape.
These accomplices could be anybody.
A new girlfriend or a close friend of his.
With an aptitude for manipulation
and presenting as a social chameleon,
it wouldn't have been hard for him
to explain away any questions.
Just as he took advantage of Nadja and her situation,
he could easily have found another vulnerable victim.
Local authorities tend to believe
that he died somewhere near Bear Lake,
located on the Idaho-Utah border.
Sources close to the victims have heavily disagreed
with theories that he committed suicide,
meaning that he may have passed
from exposure to the elements, or attacks from wild animals.
Until his remains are discovered,
we may never have a concrete answer,
meaning that despite the forensic evidence
linking him to the murders,
this case remains unsolved.
For now, the relatives and friends of his victims
are still trying to put their lives back together.
Others read over old Facebook posts,
trying to find signs they'd missed,
wondering if they could somehow have prevented it.
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