Dateline: Secrets Uncovered - A complete timeline of the Bob McClancy murder case, revisited 

The death of Bob McClancy was featured in one of the chilling episodes of Dateline. McClancy was a Vietnam veteran and an ex-Florida sheriff’s detective who was discovered dead in his Tennessee cabin in May 2006. Bob was found slumped in his recliner, a handgun in one hand and an empty pill bottle in the other. With a well-documented history of mental health challenges, officials initially had no reason to question what seemed like a heartbreaking but simple case of suicide.

But as Dateline: Secrets Uncovered later exposes, Bob's death was far from a straightforward suicide. Years after he was buried, a sinister web of lies, fraud, and manipulation came to light, including one that compelled Bob’s stepson to turn against his own mother. From a reported suicide, it ultimately unfolded as a complex plot of murder involving a set of forged documents, stolen benefits, and a betrayal of trust.

Read on to know the complete timeline of McClancy's murder case.

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Here is the complete timeline of events to refer to the Bob McClancy murder case, per Dateline

1995: Bob McClancy marries Martha Ann, a secretary at the Florida sheriff’s office, who is the mother of two sons.

Early 2000s: Bob retires from law enforcement. After the couple left L.A., they settled down in a remote cabin in Coker Creek, Tennessee.

January 2006: Bob goes through a six-week VA program for PTSD, where he meets another veteran named Charles “Chuck” Kaczmarczyk.

May 15, 2006: Bob dies at 56, found by his son on his recliner with a gun, which he never fired, and an empty pill bottle. Kaczmarczyk finds the body and calls 911.

2006–2007: Bob is dead, ruled a suicide. Kaczmarczyk and Martha Ann become close and eventually secretly marry.

2008: Kaczmarczyk’s alleged military exploits begin to attract media attention and questions from veterans.

2009-12: U.S. attorneys expose a multi-pronged scam involving bogus military claims.

2013: Martha Ann and Kaczmarczyk are found guilty of federal fraud and sent to jail.

Post 2013: New evidence links Martha Ann to Bob’s death, opening up the case again.

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How the investigation discovered the truth in Bob McClancy's murder case, as per Dateline

Though Bob's death didn't trigger any immediate red flags, some relatives and investigators found Kaczmarczyk's icy attitude during the 911 call and in the days after disturbing. People started to doubt more when Martha Ann quickly found a new partner in Kaczmarczyk and got married. They lived an extravagant lifestyle with lavish cars and travels, which eventually attracted federal scrutiny.

Then the case took a shocking turn. The investigation revealed that both Martha Ann and Kaczmarczyk had falsified military records and were receiving thousands of dollars in government funds, approximately $10,000 per month. During this process, when she asked her son Sean McGavic to hold files for her, he stumbled on unsettling images of Bob’s corpse staged before police arrival. It was McGavic who turned to the police and assisted in a recorded call in which his mother’s role in Bob’s death was implicated.

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Here is when the final breakthrough happened in the case, as shown on Dateline

The final break occurred when Kaczmarczyk pleaded guilty to prosecutors and told them that Martha Ann had been tricking Bob into eating food laced with handfuls of his PTSD medicine. She called it “magic dust,” which was slowly poisoning him. Authorities also found a fraudulent will in which Bob’s biological daughter was disinherited, further giving the appearance of a financial motive.

Martha Ann was convicted of attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder, and Kaczmarczyk took a plea deal. Already incarcerated for embezzlement, separate charges were also brought against Bobby and his wife for the role they played in his death, as the Dateline episode portrays.