Eugene Palmer Added to Ten Most Wanted Fugitives List
New York Man Accused of Murdering His Son’s Wife
Select to view poster and related information
Update: Palmer was removed from the Top Ten list on July 20, 2022, after it was determined that he no longer fit the criteria for inclusion.
Eugene Palmer, wanted for allegedly shooting and killing his daughter-in-law outside her home in Stony Point, New York, on September 24, 2012, has been added to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. He should be considered armed and dangerous.
After he allegedly fired three shots at Tammy Palmer, 39, Eugene Palmer was last seen entering New York’s Harriman State Park. A reward of up to $100,000 is being offered for information leading to Palmer’s capture.
Palmer would now be 80 years old. Although some members of his family have asserted that he likely died in the Harriman woods, Haverstraw Police Detective Michael Cruger said no body was found during multiple searches, and he believes Palmer is very much alive.
The victim of the shooting was married to Eugene Palmer’s son and lived with their two children close to several members of the Palmer family on a large parcel of land. According to the Haverstraw Police Department and the FBI, Eugene Palmer developed a strained relationship with Tammy Palmer as her marriage to Eugene’s son deteriorated. “Before the incident,” Detective Cruger said, “a judge issued an order of protection.”
On the morning of September 24, 2012, Tammy Palmer walked her children to catch the school bus at the end of the property’s long driveway. Eugene Palmer was believed to have been hiding in the woods, and as she walked the driveway back toward her home, Palmer allegedly shot at her from a distance, striking her arm and then missing her with a second shot. The third, fatal shot was delivered at close range to the victim’s chest.
FBI New York Special Agent Andrew Fisher said that after the shooting, Eugene Palmer fled into the wooded 45,000-acre state park that borders the family property: “He drove his truck about 100 yards into Harriman State Park and walked in.”
“His age doesn’t change the level of violence in this crime.”
Andrew Fisher, special agent, FBI New York
Law enforcement located his vehicle, and with the help of search dogs, followed his scent to a campground in the woods. The dogs lost the scent at another roadway in the park.
Fisher says the fact that Palmer is a senior citizen does not make him less of a risk or less of a priority to law enforcement. “His age doesn’t change the level of violence in this crime,” he said.
Cruger stressed that finding Palmer is very much a priority for the Haverstraw Police Department and for the Rockland County community. “I want to bring the family closure. It hit me hard that we couldn’t capture him before Tammy’s mother passed,” he said. “It’s unfinished for us.”
Palmer is mostly bald with some grey hair and brown eyes. He is 5’10” tall, weighs 220 pounds, and has a misshapen thumb on his left hand. He is a car racing enthusiast and an experienced hunter and outdoorsman.
If you have any information concerning Eugene Palmer, please call your local FBI office or contact your nearest American Embassy or Consulate. Tips can also be submitted at tips.fbi.gov.
