Troy Hillman — From CPA to Cold Case Detective: Solving America's Most Difficult Murders Through Persistence, Technology, and Justice

In this fascinating episode of the Storehouse Media Group Podcast, host Sherrie Price Clark and Neil Haley welcome Troy Hillman, a retired Phoenix Police Department homicide sergeant, former Certified Public Accountant (CPA), cold case investigator, consultant, and author of Chasing the Zombie Hunter.Troy shares one of the most unusual career paths imaginable—leaving a promising future in corporate accounting to pursue his lifelong dream of becoming a police officer. That decision ultimately led him to solve some of Arizona's most complex cold cases while pioneering the use of investigative technologies that helped shape modern homicide investigations.Before wearing a badge, Troy had already built an impressive academic and professional résumé.He earned:Certified Public Accountant (CPA)MBA in FinanceMaster's Degree in Educational LeadershipWorking for one of Chicago's premier accounting firms, Troy was viewed as future partner material.Then he made a decision that stunned everyone around him.He walked into the managing partner's office and announced he was leaving accounting to become a police officer in Phoenix.Friends.Family.Colleagues.Everyone thought he was making a mistake.For Troy, however, accounting simply wasn't his calling.He wanted challenges.He wanted investigations.He wanted to solve puzzles.After joining the Phoenix Police Department, Troy initially worked in financial crimes, where his accounting background became a tremendous advantage.Investigating fraud, identity theft, and financial crimes allowed him to combine analytical thinking with investigative work.Eventually, after being promoted to sergeant, an unexpected opportunity changed his career forever.The department's homicide leadership asked Troy to help reorganize and improve the struggling Cold Case Unit.That assignment became his life's work.Troy compares cold case investigations to searching for hidden objects inside a complex picture.The clues already exist.The challenge is discovering what everyone else missed.Unlike active investigations, cold cases often have:Thousands of pages of reportsMultiple previous investigatorsYears or decades of evidenceDead endsChanging technologyMissing witnessesThe detective's job is to organize the information, rebuild the timeline, and identify overlooked opportunities.Fresh eyes often uncover details that had been hiding in plain sight for years.When Troy entered Phoenix's Cold Case Unit, he encountered an astonishing challenge.The department believed it had approximately 2,500 unsolved homicide cases.Even determining the exact number became an enormous project.Drawing upon his CPA background, Troy helped organize, catalog, and modernize the unit's investigative process.His systematic approach brought structure to thousands of unresolved investigations while creating more efficient ways to prioritize and review cases.One of Troy's proudest accomplishments involved helping pioneer the use of investigative genetic genealogy in homicide investigations.Years before the technique gained worldwide attention through the Golden State Killer investigation, Phoenix detectives were already exploring how genealogy could identify unknown suspects.Troy explains that his team recognized the enormous investigative potential of combining DNA evidence with genealogy databases.The success of these early efforts helped demonstrate how emerging technologies could dramatically improve the ability to solve decades-old murders.Neil Haley and Troy discuss how artificial intelligence may completely transform future investigations.AI has the potential to rapidly analyze:Thousands of investigative reportsCrime scene documentsWitness interviewsEvidence logsPhotographsHistorical case files