Robert ‘Bob’ McClancy, US Marine Corps Veteran

“Monroe County judge calls crime the most evil he’s seen.” -WATE.com

Robert ‘Bob’ McClancy, 47, and Martha Ann McClancy worked in the Manatee County Sheriff’s Department in Florida. Martha was a secretary and Bob was a detective. They fell in love later in life and Bob decided to take an early retirement from his job. The two decided to move away from the fast paced life in Florida and settled in Tellico Plains, Tennessee which is nestled in the Smoky Mountains. Bob suffered with severe stress after years of working as a detective and his time in the Marines. Bob was a highly decorated Vietnam veteran and Purple Heart recipient who was also diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Bob went through some very traumatic combat experiences and was on strong medications. Bob would often take the wrong dose so Martha Ann decided it was time for her to take control.

In the meantime, Bob was grateful for his friend and fellow veteran Charles Kaczmarczyk because he understood what Bob was going through. Chuck said he had seen combat as well and was also awarded the Purple Heart. The pair had a lot in common. Over the course of time, Martha Ann quickly warmed up to Chuck, the “military hero.” Their relationship blossomed beyond a friendship over time and Bob was never aware of their ongoing affair. Martha Ann and Chuck frequently got together in Bob’s home. They fell in love and soon Bob was looking increasingly like a troubled third wheel. Martha often told Chuck things would be better if Bob went away. One night, Martha claimed to find Bob barely conscious after he had taken an accidental overdose of his medications for PTSD. When she got to the hospital, she claimed Bob was always messing up his medications.

On May 15, 2006, Chuck said he discovered Bob dead after another accidental overdose on his medications. Chuck found his friend dead in his chair with an empty pill bottle in one hand and a 38 revolver in the other hand. Chuck appeared distraught after finding his friend as did  the sobbing Martha Ann after she found out. Everything pointed to a tragic suicide and Martha Ann leaned harder on her friend Chuck. Five months later, Martha and Chuck got married and embarked on a new life with a whole new look. They didn’t even look like the same people when they started their new careers as fraudsters. Martha Ann took on the role of a veteran pretending to be a Purple Heart recipient and claimed she earned it after the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon. And Chuck doesn’t have PTSD, he was faking it for the veteran benefits. Chuck had been in the military but he never saw a day of combat.

Martha Ann and Chuck both faked permanent injuries and had this whole scam going at the Department of Veterans Affairs. They used a wheelchair or a cane to make it appear they had physical injuries as well. Over six years, the two defrauded the federal government of nearly $800,000 dollars until Chuck told one war story too many. Other veterans came forward and said he was lying because what he was describing was not what happened as they were there. Martha Ann and Charles both ended up behind bars and their criminal history was over. And then one day, Martha Ann’s son made a surprise discovery on her computer. Martha Ann’s son found pictures of his step-father, Bob, dead in a chair. In each picture, Bob was in a different position. There were pictures of Bob with the gun in his hand, then there were pictures of Bob without the gun in his hand.

Martha Ann’s son knew the photos would implicate his mother in the murder of his step-father Bob but he loved Bob and didn’t hesitate to contact authorities. Martha Ann’s son cooperated with the police fully in a sting operation to nail his mother. Martha Ann asked him to get rid of all the photos. The police knew where to find the person who took the pictures because Chuck was spending 30 months in jail for his part in the disability fraud. Chuck immediately wanted to know what was in it for him so the police agreed to tell the district attorney that Chuck cooperated with them in the investigation. Chuck confessed that Martha Ann had crushed up Bob’s pills and put them in his drink and then confessed to the entire twisted tail. Martha called the crushed pills her “magic dust.”

The police would learn that Martha Ann crushed up the medication and put it in Bob’s drinks in an effort to slowly kill him. And on May 15, 2006, Martha gave Bob a lethal dose of “magic dust” and then went to work to create her alibi. Chuck was supposed to check in on Bob later that afternoon and it was his job to pretend to find him dead. Martha Ann was sure Bob would be dead by then. But when Chuck arrived to check in on Bob, he was laying on the floor and wasn’t dead yet. So Chuck lifted him up, placed him in the chair, and fed him more of the crushed pills. Then Chuck sat there and waited until he died. Martha Ann told Chuck to keep it simple and make it look like a suicide. But Chuck went overboard, placed a gun in his hand, and took pictures of Bob in various positions. Martha wanted to see the pictures.

Despite Chuck’s confession, Martha Ann claimed Bob took the wrong medication and she had nothing to do with it. She never admitted to any involvement whatsoever. The detectives said she was one of the coldest people they had ever interviewed. In 2013, Charles Kaczmarczyk pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit first degree murder and was sentenced to twenty-five (25) years in federal prison. Nine years after her husband’s death, Martha Ann McClancy was convicted of attempted first degree murder and conspiracy to commit first degree murder. She was sentenced to the maximum of fifty years in prison and is eligible for parole in 2028. Those involved with the investigation claimed Martha Ann never showed an ounce of regret or remorse or guilt for what she did to her husband.

Dateline:

Preview: The death of a beloved Tennessee man is believed to be a suicide. But when a son questions his mother, he uncovers a dark family conspiracy. -Secrets in the Smoky Mountains, Dateline NBC (October 24, 2016)

Oxygen:

Preview: Robert McClancy was found dead in his home, but was it suicide triggered from his PTSD, did his best friend who found him turn out to be the one who killed him, or was it his seemingly loving wife behind it all? -Martha Ann McClancy, Snapped (S21, E2)

Investigation Discovery:

Two can keep a secret, if one of them is dead. These Deadly Women think they’ve committed the perfect murders when they “Hit and Run.” -Hit and Run, Deadly Women (S11, E6)

Editor’s note: With a cable subscription, you can download the free ID Go app and watch Investigation Discovery programming at your convenience. And for those who do not have cable, you can watch “unlocked” episodes on the ID Go app including the latest premieres. For those who prefer commercial free programming during your binge session, Prime Video has an ID channel: ‘True Crime Files by Investigation Discovery” available for $3.99 a month. It’s a compilation of older seasons but totally worth the cost if you are a true crime addict. Download the ID Go app or purchase ID True Crime Files & binge away.

Related Links:
Disability Day of Mourning: Robert McClancy
FBI: Husband and Wife Indicted for Conspiracy to Steal Public Money from Two United States Government Agencies
Knoxville couple charged with conspiracy to steal money from U.S. government agencies
Ex-New Boston residents face federal charges over claims about veteran status
Couple lies about PTSD, fakes military records to receive benefits
Couple charged with faking military service injuries to receive benefits
Honoring our military medalists the right way
SSA OIG: Bogus War Hero Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison for Social Security Fraud
Charles Kaczmarczyk, 59, pleads guilty to 2006 murder
Bogus war hero pleads guilty in conspiracy to murder friend
Federal prisoner pleads guilty in 2006 Monroe County murder
Federal Inmate Pleads Guilty To Murder Plot 7 Years Ago With Victim’s Wife
Knoxville woman arraigned in husband’s 2006 death
Wife Faces Monroe County Murder Charge of Husband
Woman indicted in TBI case surrounding husband’s 2006 killing
Woman indicted for 2006 murder of husband in Monroe County
Knoxville Woman Moves From Federal Custody To Face Charges Of Plotting To Kill Husband And Murdering Him
Trial date set in murder mystery
Woman found guilty in husband’s death
McClancy sentenced to 50 years for killing husband
Monroe County woman sentenced to 50 years in husband’s murder
Wife Who Murdered Decorated Combat Vet For His Benefits Gets 50 Years
VA OIG: Investigation Leads to 50-Year Sentence
Fake 9/11 First Responder Killed Her Husband for His Real VA Check
NBC explores Tellico Plains murder staged as suicide
NBC’s Dateline revisits murder mystery in Monroe County
Robert ‘Bob’ McClancy: ‘Dateline NBC’ Ex-military man murdered in fake PTSD suicide by wife Martha Ann Kaczmarczyk and her lover, Chuck in Tennessee
Who is Sean Michael? An Adoption Mystery: Part 1, Meet Sean
Remembering Bob McClancy: “He just always took care of us”
Fake War Hero Charles Kaczmarczyk (YouTube)
The Murder of Bob McClancy (YouTube)
Dateline Episode Trailer: Secrets in the Smoky Mountains | Dateline NBC
Martha Ann McClancy | Snapped | Oxygen (S21, E2)
Martha Ann McClancy | Snapped | Season 21 | Oxygen (Amazon)
Snapped: Sneak Peek – Martha Ann McClancy (Season 21, Episode 2) | Oxygen
Snapped: Sneak Peek – Suicide or Murder (Season 21, Episode 2) | Oxygen
Snapped: Bonus Clip – Martha McClancy Sentencing (Season 21, Episode 2) | Oxygen
Snapped: After The Verdict – Martha McClancy (Season 21, Episode 2) | Oxygen
Hit and Run | Deadly Women | Investigation Discovery (S11, E6)
Hit and Run | Deadly Women | Investigation Discovery (website)
Hit and Run | Deadly Women | Investigation Discovery (Amazon)
Hit and Run | Deadly Women | Investigation Discovery (Hulu)
Marine Veteran Robert McClancy Poisoned with PTSD Medications; Martha McClancy & Charles Kaczmarczyk Convicted of Fraud & Murder (May 15, 2006)
Snapped Premiered ‘Martha Ann McClancy’ on Oxygen: Wife and Lover Staged Marine Vet Bob McClancy’s Death as Suicide (August 13, 2017)
Deadly Women Premiered ‘Hit and Run’ on ID: Martha McClancy & Charles Kaczmarczyk Killed Marine Vet Bob McClancy for Assets (October 6, 2017)
Deadly Women: 30 Military and Veteran Homicide Cases Featured on Investigation Discovery