Former Cop Who Vanished to China After Killing His Wife Is Finally Back to Face Justice

A 21-Year Manhunt Comes to an End

A man accused of murdering his wife in Goose Creek, South Carolina, more than two decades ago has been returned to the United States after spending more than 21 years as an international fugitive — marking the end of one of the U.S. Marshals Service's longest-running manhunts. Dan William Hiers Jr., 53, arrived back in the United States this week after deputy U.S. marshals traveled to Shanghai, China, to take custody of the longtime fugitive.

Authorities say the last confirmed sighting of Hiers came the day his wife, Ludimila Hiers, was killed. Goose Creek Police say Ludimila Hiers, 24, was found dead on March 15, 2005, inside the couple's home — shot in the back of the head while she was sleeping. The former Charleston Police Department officer was placed on the Marshals Service's "15 Most Wanted" list in June 2005 — three months after he vanished.

A Troubled Officer Who Fled Before Justice Could Catch Him

Hiers had been suspended from the Charleston Police Department in 2004 after he was accused of sexual misconduct with a minor. He was arrested by North Charleston police on charges of committing lewd acts on a child under 16 and was free on bond when he failed to appear for additional proceedings in March 2005. His disappearance that same month — right after his wife's murder — set off a search that would span more than two decades and two continents.

A Marshals Service wanted poster described Hiers as "armed and dangerous" and noted he was a former police officer with 11 years of law enforcement experience who was trained in police tactics and martial arts. The Hiers case was featured multiple times over the years on "America's Most Wanted" and "The Hunt with John Walsh." Despite the national attention, Hiers managed to elude capture for more than two decades while living in China.

An International Effort to Bring Him Home

Deputy U.S. Marshals arrived in Shanghai, China, on Wednesday, July 22, 2026, to take custody of Hiers and return him to the United States. The Marshals Service credited the Chinese Ministry of Public Security, the U.S. Department of State's Diplomatic Security Service, the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of International Affairs, and the FBI with helping investigate, apprehend, and remove Hiers from China.

U.S. Marshals Service Director Gadyaces S. Serralta said, "Dan Hiers was in a position of public trust, but he betrayed that trust in the worst possible way. Placing him on our 15 Most Wanted list made his capture a priority for this agency. His return to South Carolina is both significant and rewarding, and we thank our domestic and international partners for their tireless persistence in bringing this fugitive to justice." The agency's announcement does not explain the length of the delay or detail what legal proceedings occurred in China before Hiers was handed over to American authorities.

What Comes Next

Hiers, 53, is wanted on two warrants in South Carolina — a Dorchester County warrant for criminal sexual conduct with a minor and a Goose Creek warrant for murder. The Marshals Service also had an active federal warrant for Hiers for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution. With multiple serious charges pending, he now faces the full weight of a legal system he spent two decades trying to outrun.

For the family of Ludimila Hiers — a 24-year-old woman allegedly shot in her sleep by the man who swore to protect her — this week's news represents a long-overdue step toward accountability. The case is a stark reminder that for all the advantages a fugitive might gain by fleeing abroad, the reach of American law enforcement has grown longer, more patient, and increasingly global. As the Diplomatic Security Service put it, their work "proves that no fugitive is beyond the reach of American justice."