On a safari trip in 2016, Bianca Rudolph was allegedly fatally shot and murdered by her husband, Lawrence Rudolph.
The couple had traveled to Kafue National Park, Zambia, in Southern Africa, so Bianca, an avid game hunter, could add a leopard to her trophy collection. However, a loud gunshot was heard soon after they arrived at their hunting camp.
The authorities rushed to the site only to find a mortally wounded Bianca bleeding from her chest with a shotgun wound. Her husband told the officers he was in the bathroom, taking a shower when the shot occurred.
Lawrence was quick to dub it an accident, and the authorities seemed to agree. According to his statement, the shotgun was still loaded from the previous day of hunting, and while attempting to pack it, Bianca accidentally set it off, injuring and killing herself.
However, things started to seem suspicious when Lawrence was quick to cremate the body, perhaps as a way to get ahead of any evidence the authorities might find on the body.
Murder: Zambia Safari Death Of Bianca Rudolph: Meet Her Husband Lawrence Rudolph
The case of Bianca Rudolph’s murder grows stranger, and things are not looking good for Lawrence Rudolph. Is that for a good reason or not? Only time can tell.
Lawrence Rudolph is the founder of Three Rivers Dental, situated in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Rudolph built a small fortune out of his dentistry franchise and was quite popular in Pittsburgh. He would regularly appear on local T.V., advertising his company’s services.
He met his wife, Bianca, at the University of Pittsburgh, where he studied dentistry and married her in 1982. Before her murder, they had been together for 34 years.
Where is Us Dentist Lawrence Rudolph Now?
Lawrence Rudolph is currently confined at Denver’s Downtown Detention Center on charges of murder and insurance fraud.
He was arrested in December in Cabo San Lucas in a surprise arrest on charges of foreign murder and wire fraud.
Rudolph faces prospects of life imprisonment or death if found guilty by a jury on charges of foreign murder. His trial is set for late July in the U.S. District Court in Denver, where the jury selection is currently taking place.
Rudolph has pleaded not guilty and maintains his innocence against the murder of his wife of 34 years, even with the mounting evidence against him. Claiming he was in the bathroom and citing his wife’s disappointment in not being able to capture a leopard the day of her death.
He will face trial along with his mistress, Lori Milliron. Lori is a former manager of his Pittsburgh-area business.
Milliron has been charged with lying to a federal grand jury about her relationship with Rudolph and comforting and assisting Rudoph to hinder his trial and punishment.
The Case Against Lawrence Rudolph: His Trial And Charges
Although authorities quickly believed Lawrence Rudolph’s claim of no foul play, subsequent investigation disproves that.
His insistence to the U.S. embassy to cremate the body soon after and that too locally tipped the chief consular things were perhaps moving too fast, which led to the decision to photograph the recently deceased Bianca’s body for more potential evidence.
Because of this added examination, authorities discovered the gunshot that killed Bianca came from a distance, 2-3.5 feet away, poking holes into Lawrence’s story. It was doubtful that Bianca shot herself.
The case against Lawrence grew more robust when a friend contacted the FBI two weeks after Bianca’s death and strongly urged that foul play was involved. According to her, Lawrence was verbally abusive and was regularly unfaithful.
Bianca’s friend claimed that Lawrence was also unfaithful around the time of the shooting. This theory became prominent when Lawrence’s girlfriend moved into his Arizona home only three months after his wife’s death.
Bianca’s friend further claims that Bianca would be against cremation as a devout Catholic. Her faith also comes into play as a possible reason for her death.
Lawrence would never divorce Bianca for fear of losing money, the friend adds, while Bianca would never divorce Lawrence because she is catholic.
Perhaps the most damning evidence against Lawrence Rudolph is that he collected nearly 4.9 million dollars after his wife’s death, which is why the FBI believes he orchestrated her death.