Arrest made in 1986 murder of Massachusetts teen

Massachusetts State Police and police in North Carolina have arrested MICHAEL HAND, now 61, of Troutman, N.C., for the October 1986 homicide of 15-year-old Tracy Gilpin of Kingston, Mass. HAND is in custody in North Carolina pending an expected court appearance there tomorrow. Authorities have begun rendition proceedings to bring him back to Massachusetts to be prosecuted for Tracy Gilpin’s murder.

Tracy’s sister, Colonel Kerry Gilpin, the Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police, issues the following statement:

Statement of Massachusetts State Police Colonel Kerry A. Gilpin
“My family and I would like to thank Plymouth County District Attorney Tim Cruz, the Plymouth County State Police Detective Unit, the Massachusetts State Police Crime Lab, the Kingston and Plymouth Police Departments, police in North Carolina, and all of the investigators who have worked diligently over the last 31 years to solve Tracy’s murder. We are also extremely grateful to the members of the public who have provided information to investigators. For the past three decades, we have remained hopeful that Tracy’s murderer would be identified. The much-welcomed news of an arrest in the case leaves us cautiously optimistic that justice for Tracy is within reach. My thoughts today are not just with my own family, but also with all the families who have lost loved ones to violence. We will continue to work tirelessly to find justice for all murder victims.”

Tracy Gilpin was last seen alive walking after a party. Her body was found in the Myles Standish State Forest a few weeks later.