James R. Fitzgerald, a retired FBI agent, conducted an 18-year manhunt for one of the most infamous criminals in modern history, Theodore John Kaczynski (The Unabomber).

The two-decade-long horror ended with the capture of the Unabomber, but it took a toll on Fitzgerald’s marriage to Ellie Fitzgerald.

The Unabomber Affair Compromised Marriage

In 1976, James Fitzgerald wed Ellie Fitzgerald and had three sons. However, the nature of his work, particularly the Unabomber case, was detrimental to his family.

His employment required him to travel to various locations and spend days away from home. This had a significant effect on his relationship with his wife. After his team solved the case, he and his wife subsequently divorced.

They divorced amicably and decided to co-parent their children.

New Partner: Natalie Schilling

In 2017, the Discovery series Manhunt: Unabomber reintroduced Fitzgerald to the public eye. Also covered was his new fiancée, Natalie Schilling. The series was based on actual events surrounding the identification of the Unabomber.

Fitzgerald was portrayed by Sam Worthing, and Natalie Schilling, who assisted Fitzgerald in deciphering Kaczynski’s penmanship, was portrayed by Lynn Collins.

Natalie is a linguist at Georgetown University in Washington; her primary research interests include ethnic, stylistic, and gender-based variation in American English dialects, as well as Forensic Linguistics.

Schilling and Fitzgerald have not yet wed, despite the paucity of media coverage of the couple.

They appeared frequently at press events for programs like Manhunt and Criminal Minds. In September 2014, they were first spotted in public at a Criminal Minds press event.

How Did He Capture Kaczynski?

Ted, also known as Theodore John Kaczynski, was a meticulous domestic terrorist and mathematical prodigy.

Between 1978 and 1995, he never left any trace of the bombs he mailed, which killed three persons and injured twenty-three. But he left intentionally deceptive clues in them and dubbed them his manifesto.

The investigation of the manifestos led to the identification of the criminal mastermind.

Fitzgerald deduced specific facts about the cold-blooded killer from his manifestos, such as the fact that the Unabomber was ‘obsessively meticulous’ in his writing, frequently making minor errors, such as a comma after a sentence or an exclamation mark that was meant to be a question mark.

The results were broadcast on national television for the entire world to see.

Eventually, Ted Kaczynski’s sister-in-law recognized his writings and informed the FBI of his identity. Ted’s use of the phrase “cool-headed logician” during his college years ultimately convinced her husband to accept her story.

On April 3, 1996, after effectively locating his cabin, Kaczynski was arrested. He is currently serving eight life sentences without the possibility of parole.

After the Unabomber, Fitzgerald adopted a laid-back approach to his career.

After the infamous capture, the FBI profiler assisted in the development of training programs and threat assessment tools. He also kept a modest profile in the media, serving only as a consultant for media productions of crime series such as Criminal Minds and Sleepy Hollow.