Up in Flames: How Robert William Fisher Murdered His Entire Family and Then Disappeared
In April 2001, Robert Fisher, a father and husband murdered his wife and children in cold blood before blowing up his house and disappearing. He has been a wanted fugitive ever since
Background
On April 10th, 2001, a quiet Scottsdale, Arizona suburb was shaken from sleep by a violent explosion that rocked the neighborhood, sending flames and smoke billowing into the sky as a family home was quickly engulfed in flames. After firefighters began pulling bodies from the blaze, the situation took a much darker turn.
The victims, Mary Fisher and her two children, Brittney and Bobby, had not died in the fire- they had been murdered before the flames ever touched them. Meanwhile, husband and father, Robert Fisher, was nowhere to be found. In the coming days, what began as a tragic fire quickly spiraled into a murder investigation and a nationwide manhunt.
Fisher had vanished completely, leaving behind a mystery that still endures over 20 years later.
Robert William Fisher
Robert William Fisher was born in New York City on April 13th, 1961. His parents, William Fisher and Jan Howell, had three children in total, with Robert being the only boy. When Robert was 15, his parents divorced, and he and his siblings followed their father to Arizona.
Robert struggled with the aftermath of his parents’ divorce, and although he and his sisters enrolled in a local Tucson high school and attempted to carry on with life, Robert could not seem to move past his parents’ divorce.
After high school, Robert enlisted in the United States Navy, where he aspired to become a Navy SEAL. However, he did not make the cut. He also spent time working as a firefighter in California, but after suffering a back injury, he was forced to retire.
After two failed career attempts, Fisher returned to Arizona, where he began pursuing opportunities in the medical field, working as a surgical catheter technician and a respiratory therapist. Later, Robert landed a role at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale as a surgical technician.
Marriage and Family Life
In 1987, Robert Fisher married Mary Cooper. Together, they had two children- a daughter named Brittney and a son named Robert Jr., whom they nicknamed Bobby. However, their marriage was far from blissful, and the issues were evident to friends and family from the start.
Fisher was described as cruel and detached, while also being an authoritative and controlling head of household. Mary was not allowed to decorate the home, other than the few photos Fisher allowed to be hung on the walls. Fisher frequently snapped at his wife and children over the slightest offenses.
Fisher’s mother, Jan, noted that she saw similar patterns of abuse in her son’s marriage as she’d endured in her own relationship with Robert’s father- she never stood up to her husband, and Mary didn’t appear to be standing up to Robert.
A friend once commented that Fisher’s adult family looked shockingly similar to the dysfunctional family he grew up with.
Disturbing Behavior
Outside of work and family life, Fisher was an avid outdoorsman who had been hunting since his youth. Friends who had previously accompanied Fisher on hunting trips noted some strange and disturbing behaviors, which included rubbing the blood of an elk on his face, shooting a stray dog, and terrifying a picnicking family by firing repeatedly into the air behind them.