Naman Shrestha
The episode titled ‘The Day She Disappeared’ on NBC’s ‘Dateline provides us with a detailed account of the horrific murder case of Nancy Cooper in 2008. When she went for a morning job and never returned home, the entire community was shellshocked and hoping that the young mother of two was found unharmed. Since her husband, Brad Cooper, had a reputation for being controlling, all eyes pointed towards him. After the investigation, he was arrested a few months after the demise of his wife despite his claims of innocence.
Brad Cooper’s Infidelity Led to Nancy Wanting Divorce
Born in the early 1970s in Medicine Hat, Alberta, Bradley “Brad” Graham Cooper pursued a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from the University of Calgary after completing high school. After his graduation, he landed a job at TransCanada Pipelines as a Network Engineer. In 1998, his paths crossed with Nancy Rentz Cooper in Calgary, Alberta, and sparks flew between them in no time. Over time, he not only got close to Nancy but also her immediate family, including her mother and father, making an impression as a tech wizard by helping out with the computers in the Coopers’ family business. Due to his competent skillset and talent in the field of technology, he received an offer from Cisco Systems in Raleigh, North Carolina.
So, in order to make the immigration process to the United States smoother and stay together, Brad and Nancy tied the knot in the fall of 2000. In Cisco Systems, he became an expert in the marriage of internet technology and telephones, working as a VoIP Engineer and VoIP Architect. In the coming years, the couple welcomed two adorable daughters — Bella in 2004 and Katie in 2006. In 2005, he began doing his Masters in Business Administration at North Carolina State University – College of Management. After completing that, he pursued an MBA with a Concentration in Product Innovation from the same university. According to reports, cracks in Brad and Nancy’s marriage had been there since the very beginning.
Even though they appeared to be a picture-perfect family, he was allegedly controlling and manipulative in nature when it came to her. Things got even worse when Nancy found out that her husband had cheated on her with her close friend, Heather, in the spring of 2007. When she confronted him, he straight away denied Heather’s claims for several months. However, on New Year’s Eve day, he came clean to his wife about him being unfaithful to her, but he emphasized that it happened only once. The couple decided to work on their marriage and began going to couple counseling sessions, during which he admitted that he lied to her and told her that his affair with Heather went on for a long time. After that cat was out of the bag, the couple decided to split and sell the house. Nancy planned to move back to her family in Canada along with the kids.
Brad Cooper Got Charged With the Murder of His Wife
However, Brad did not agree to give away the custody of his daughters and send them to the United States. So, in retaliation, he canceled Nancy’s credit cards and prevented her from making any more moves. On July 12, 2008, Nancy Cooper was reported missing by a friend amidst the couple’s divorce proceedings. Brad claimed that she had gone out for jogging in the morning and did not return. A couple of days later, her body was found in water near a housing construction site several miles away from her residence. Learning about the couple’s rocky marriage, the victim’s loved ones and authorities suspected Brad Cooper of being involved in her murder. After gathering enough evidence against Brad, the police arrested him in late October 2008 and charged him with the murder of his wife.
However, his trial began after more than two years, in March 2011. During the 36-day trial, prosecutors and the defense put forward their arguments in front of the jury. But despite Brad maintaining his innocence, the jury found him guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced him to life in prison. A couple of years later, in 2013, he appealed to have his conviction overturned, which was considered as the court agreed to a retrial. While awaiting trial, he ended up pleading guilty to second-degree murder and received a jail term of 12 to 15 years, including credit for the time he served before the trial. Meanwhile, Brad also attempted to fight for the custody of his two daughters with the Coopers. However, his guilty plea made him ineligible for custody and allowed Nancy’s twin sister to take custody of them.
Brad Cooper is Out of Prison and Likely Resides in Canada
After completing his 12-year sentence, Bradley Graham Cooper was released from Mountain View Correctional Institution in Spruce Pine, North Carolina, on November 23, 2020. Right after his release, he was supposedly taken into custody by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement in order to begin the process of transporting him back to his native land, Canada. As of today, he is seemingly residing in Canada but doesn’t have the right to contact either of his daughters. It appears that he prefers to keep a low profile these days and stay away from the prying eyes of the media.
Read More: Garry and Donna Rentz: Where Are Nancy’s Parents Now?
