Mass Stabbing Suspect BAFFLES Detectives - Bradford James Gille

September 25, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

On a September afternoon in Traverse City, Michigan, a man walked into a Walmart, pulled out a buck knife with a four-inch blade, and began stabbing shoppers. By the time bystanders subdued him with shopping carts and a citizen with a rifle, three people were down. When police arrived, the suspect was on the ground, handcuffed, repeating: "They told me to do it, they told me to do it, and that they're evil." The man gave his name as Brad — but also said he was Jesus Christ, reborn physically in 1983 by his brother Judas Iscariot.

The suspect's own account

In the interrogation room, the suspect — identified as Bradford James Gille — was calm, cooperative, and eager to explain himself. He told detectives he had been homeless, sleeping in a gazebo, and had come to Traverse City by bus from Petoskey. His plan, he said, was to leave the country for Europe, but he kept getting delayed. He believed the food at Walmart was poisoned, that employees were cannibals, and that strangers walking through the store were actually his heavenly children being murdered in front of him.

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What you'll learn

1 (01:15) **911 Calls and Initial Chaos** - Emergency dispatchers receive frantic calls reporting a mass stabbing at a Traverse City Walmart; a caller describes a man with a knife attacking multiple people in the parking lot.
2 (12:13) **Suspect's Bizarre First Statements** - In the immediate aftermath, the suspect claims his name is "Jesus," that he was "reborn" in 1983 by his brother "Judas Iscariot," and that a TV show named "Nip/Tuck" is "based on reality."
3 (14:49) **Interrogation Begins: Establishing Baseline** - Detectives Matt and Reese begin the formal interview, reading the suspect his rights and starting to gather personal history.
4 (17:28) **Early Life, Drugs, and a Spiritual Crisis** - Gille describes a troubled youth, starting cigarettes at age 5 and moving to marijuana. He recounts a pivotal moment at age 13-14 after a friend's drowning, where he prayed at a Pentecostal church and felt he was Jesus Christ.
5 (26:53) **Homelessness and Delusions of Grandeur** - Gille explains he is homeless, trying to leave the country for Europe, and believes he is being targeted.
6 (30:23) **The Walmart Attack: The Suspect's Justification** - Gille walks through his day, explaining he went to Walmart to buy vegetables. He claims he was hearing from "spiritual realm people" and a "drill sergeant."
7 (44:13) **Confession: "I Took Them Out"** - Gille admits to stabbing people. He claims he "took them out" with a knife he had since his time in "Taski" (likely a reference to a previous location or delusion).

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Show Notes

Mass Stabbing Suspect BAFFLES Detectives - Bradford James Gille

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