In the winter of 1958, the life of James Stanley Bullock, a 27-year-old male, was cut tragically short on the streets of Saint Louis, Missouri. On a cold evening, Bullock, who worked as a clerk for the Union Electric Company and was also a part-time student, was found bloodied and stumbling near the Saint Louis Art Museum in Forest Park. He had been shot and later succumbed to his injuries, leaving behind a young wife of just over five months, Edna Ruth Bullock.
The seemingly senseless act of violence would eventually unravel a sinister and complex plot, revealing a story of greed, manipulation, and murder.
At the time of his death, James Bullock was a newlywed, having married Edna Ruth that same year. To investigators, the motive for his killing was initially unclear. However, as they delved into his life and the circumstances surrounding his death, a dark picture began to emerge. It was discovered that multiple life insurance policies had been taken out on James, totaling a substantial sum for that era. This discovery cast a shadow of suspicion on his new bride, Edna Ruth. Her behavior during police questioning was described as odd, and it was revealed that she had a past she had concealed from her new husband—a previous marriage to a local dentist named Dr. Glennon Engleman.
The investigation uncovered that Edna Ruth and Dr. Engleman, her ex-husband, were at the center of the scheme. Engleman, a charismatic and manipulative man, led a shocking double life as a contract killer. His first known victim was James Stanley Bullock. The motive was the life insurance money, a sum of $64,000, which Edna Ruth collected following her husband's death. A significant portion of this payout was then invested into one of Engleman's business ventures. Despite the strong suspicion surrounding their involvement, and their refusal to take polygraph tests, no charges were filed against either of them at the time for James Bullock's murder due to a lack of direct evidence.
It would take years for the full extent of Dr. Engleman's horrific crimes to come to light. His murder of James Stanley Bullock was just the beginning of a long and bloody career as a killer for hire. Over several decades, Engleman was responsible for numerous murders, often using his relationships with women to orchestrate his deadly schemes for financial gain. Eventually, his web of deceit and violence unraveled, and he was apprehended and convicted for his many crimes. Glennon Engleman received multiple life sentences without the possibility of parole and died in prison. While Edna Ruth Bullock was never prosecuted for her role in her husband's death, the murder of James Stanley Bullock stands as the chilling first chapter in the story of a trusted dentist who was, in reality, a cold-blooded killer.
