[4] A three week long manhunt ensued after he did not appear for court, which led to a police chase in Tennessee in which McGrath was shot and killed by both himself and law enforcement at the same time.

[6] McGrath grew up in Maryland, attending the Leonard Hall Junior Naval Academy and graduating from St. Mary's Ryken High School in 1987.

[1] After graduating, McGrath spent 18 years at the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, a trade group based in northern Virginia,[10] where he worked in various capacities including vice president of business development.

[17][18] While director of the MES, McGrath used state funds on personal expenses, including a $50,935 Chevrolet Suburban, $63,000 on remodeling and furniture, and $50,000 on trips to Naples, Miami, Israel, and Las Vegas.

[19][20] According to legislative investigators, McGrath also personally hired "loyal colleagues" to key positions in the agency who were persuaded to donate to Hogan's campaign, even though they did not live in Maryland.

[23] According to prosecutors, McGrath began secretly recording meetings with other government officials on his iPhone around this time, which violated Maryland's wiretapping laws.

[25] In August 2020, the Baltimore Sun reported that McGrath received a $233,647 severance package that included a year's salary after voluntarily leaving the Maryland Environmental Service, which was approved by the agency's board of directors in a private online meeting on May 28.

[18][26] McGrath defended his severance package, writing in an op-ed for The Sun that he was entitled to a corporate-style golden parachute because MES operates "not much different from a private-sector entity.

[19][32] Democratic Party leaders of the Maryland General Assembly quickly questioned the payout, with House Speaker Adrienne A. Jones and Senate President Bill Ferguson releasing a joint statement calling its disclosure "truly shocking"[33] and asked the Joint Committee on Fair Practices and State Personnel Oversight to hold immediate hearings to look into why the payment was made;[34] the co-chairs of the committee, state senator Clarence Lam and delegate Erek Barron, promised to investigate the payment.

[45] The committee's final 82-page report was released in May 2022, which highlighted a pattern of questionable expenses and self-dealing under McGrath's tenure and called on the Maryland Environmental Service to take civil legal action against him.

[46][47] In October 2020, Maryland Matters reported that both state and federal prosecutors were investigating the severance payments made to McGrath at the end of his tenure as MES director.

[3] On October 5, 2021, McGrath was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges for wire fraud, misconduct in office, and improper use of state funds.

[48] Later that month, U.S. District Court Magistrate Thomas M. DiGirolamo approved pretrial release for McGrath, requiring him to surrender his passport and firearms.

[62][7] According to a search warrant affidavit and body camera footage obtained by the media, McGrath did not make reservations to travel to Maryland ahead of his scheduled trial, despite having told his attorney and wife otherwise.

[68][69] "Cooper" declined to give out further biographical details about himself, including his birthday or middle name, only describing himself as a semi-retired man who moved from Hagerstown to Florida who sympathized with McGrath.

[70][71] In the books, McGrath defended his tenure at the Maryland Environmental Service and provided a tell-all against Governor Larry Hogan, who he claimed had acted out of "delusional, ego-driven aspirations for the White House".

[69] On April 3, 2023, FBI agents sought to arrest McGrath at a Costco Wholesale store near the 10700 block of Kingston Pike in Farragut, Tennessee.