In April of 2015, a concerned friend's discovery led to the grim revelation of Zachary Gilkison's death in his Elsmere, Kentucky, home. Friends had become worried after Gilkison failed to show up for a planned dinner. Their concern escalated after one of them saw a news report about the arrest of a mutual acquaintance, Michael Wilcox, in Ohio. This prompted them to check on Gilkison, where they ultimately led police to find his body in the basement of his Main Street residence.
The
investigation revealed that Zachary Gilkison, a male, had been shot multiple times from behind with a. 45 caliber handgun. The man seen in the news report, 28-year-old Michael Wilcox, quickly became the primary suspect. It was discovered that Wilcox had traveled from his home in Ohio to Gilkison's house on the day of the murder. The killing of Gilkison was part of a violent spree, as Wilcox had also murdered his girlfriend, Courtney Fowler, in Ohio on the very same day.
Michael Wilcox was arrested and eventually pleaded guilty to the murder of Zachary Gilkison, in addition to charges of robbery and tampering with physical evidence. Initially, Wilcox claimed that lyrics from rap songs had compelled him to commit the murders, but psychological evaluations determined he was feigning mental illness. While drug abuse was considered a contributing factor to his violent actions, a clear motive for the killings of two people who reportedly cared for him was never fully established by law enforcement. For the murder of Gilkison, Wilcox was sentenced to life in prison. This sentence was to be served after he completed a minimum 18-year sentence in Ohio for the murder of his girlfriend.
