Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings

CBS News

Millionaire businesswoman Pamela Hargan and her youngest daughter Helen are found dead in their family home in McLean, Virginia. The strange and haunting crime scene puzzled investigators – was it a murder-suicide or was it staged to look like one? There was conflicting evidence all around. 48 Hours correspondent Peter Van Sant examines the suspenseful case in this 6-episode series, Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings. Detectives try to untangle mixed motives from mother-daughter discord, to sibling rivalry, jealousy and a family fortune. Find out if blood is really thicker when it comes to the Hargan family.

read less

Our Editor's Take

Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killingsis a limited series true crime podcast. It tells the story of the death of Pamela Hargan and her daughter Helen. The host of the show is award-winning 48 Hours correspondent Peter Van Sant. His accolades include four Emmys and three Edward R. Murrow Awards.

The podcast begins by exploring the crime scene in a wealthy suburb of Washington DC in 2017. Upon receiving a 911 call police entered Pamela Hargan's home. Hargan shared her home with her two daughters Helen and Megan and Megan's young daughter. Police found Pamela's body in the mudroom covered with a blanket. In one of the upstairs bathrooms they discovered Helen's body. A rifle lay between Helen's knees.

At first the scene suggested a murder-suicide. Megan reported that Pamela and Helen were fighting that day. Pamela was building Helen a house. Megan had said Pamela had become upset when learning Helen planned to move in with her boyfriend Carlos. When Megan left the house early in the afternoon Pamela had decided not to give the house to Helen. Megan's testimony gives Helen a motive for Pamela's murder. The case seemed to be straightforward. The podcast details the turning point.

As the investigation progressed little inconsistencies arose. First Carlos made the 911 call that led police to the Hargan house. His account of events doesn't support the murder-suicide theory. The placement of Pamela's cell phone also appeared odd. It sat free of blood on top of the blanket that the killer used to cover her body. From there evidence of foul play started to pile up. Police concluded that someone staged the murder-suicide. So who was it and why did they do it?

True crime fans may enjoy the thrilling account ofBlood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings.Acclaimed news magazine 48 Hours produces another tense real story here. Host Van Sant narrates with authority. Listeners may appreciate the thorough research and compelling pace of the episodes. Each installment is about 30 minutes long.

read less

True CrimeTrue Crime

Play Trailer

A Betrayal Like No Other — Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings

A Betrayal Like No Other — Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings

Pamela Hargan was a successful businesswoman and a devoted mother to three adult daughters. The Hargans were a typical suburban family until one day, Pamela was gunned down in her own home and her youngest daughter, Helen, was found dead upstairs. 48 Hours correspondent Peter Van Sant unpacks the web of evidence from the complex case of the Hargan killings, revealing treacherous motives of jealousy and a family fortune.Get early, ad-free access to episodes of Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings by subscribing to 48 Hours Plus on Apple Podcasts or Wondery+ on the Wondery app. The series is widely available everywhere else you get your podcasts.Subscribe to 48 Hours+: https://apple.co/4aEgENoSubscribe to Wondery+: https://wondery /plus/See Privacy Policy at https://art19 /privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19 /privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episodes

A Betrayal Like No Other — Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings

A Betrayal Like No Other — Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings

Pamela Hargan was a successful businesswoman and a devoted mother to three adult daughters. The Hargans were a typical suburban family until one day, Pamela was gunned down in her own home and her youngest daughter, Helen, was found dead upstairs. 48 Hours correspondent Peter Van Sant unpacks the web of evidence from the complex case of the Hargan killings, revealing treacherous motives of jealousy and a family fortune.Get early, ad-free access to episodes of Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings by subscribing to 48 Hours Plus on Apple Podcasts or Wondery+ on the Wondery app. The series is widely available everywhere else you get your podcasts.Subscribe to 48 Hours+: https://apple.co/4aEgENoSubscribe to Wondery+: https://wondery /plus/See Privacy Policy at https://art19 /privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19 /privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Home From Texas: 1

Home From Texas: 1

Pamela Hargan lived in a wealthy Virginia suburb, surrounded by family: her daughters Megan and Helen and her granddaughter all lived with her in her million-dollar home. From the outside, the Hargan women had it all. But when Pamela and Helen were found dead in an apparent murder-suicide, detectives had to ask: what was going on inside the Hargan household?Get early, ad-free access to episodes of Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings by subscribing to 48 Hours Plus on Apple Podcasts or Wondery+ on the Wondery app. The series will be widely available everywhere else you get your podcasts starting May 8th.Subscribe to 48 Hours+: https://apple.co/4aEgENoSubscribe to Wondery+: https://wondery /plus/See Privacy Policy at https://art19 /privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19 /privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Boyfriend: 2

The Boyfriend: 2

On the day that Helen Hargan and her mother Pamela were found dead, Helen's boyfriend Carlos spent hours convincing 911 dispatchers to send help to the Hargan house. By the time police arrived, it was too late. But Carlos' story would blow a hole in the theory that the Hargan killings were a murder-suicide.Get early, ad-free access to episodes of Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings by subscribing to 48 Hours Plus on Apple Podcasts or Wondery+ on the Wondery app. The series is widely available everywhere else you get your podcasts.Subscribe to 48 Hours+: https://apple.co/4aEgENoSubscribe to Wondery+: https://wondery /plus/See Privacy Policy at https://art19 /privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19 /privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A Killer in Plain Sight: 3

A Killer in Plain Sight: 3

When detectives started investigating the deaths of Helen and Pamela Hargan, they came to a much different conclusion than the first responders on the scene. This was not a murder-suicide; it was a double homicide. But who could have killed the mother and daughter? Police began to zoom in on a single, shocking suspect.Get early, ad-free access to episodes of Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings by subscribing to 48 Hours Plus on Apple Podcasts or Wondery+ on the Wondery app. The series is widely available everywhere else you get your podcasts.Subscribe to 48 Hours+: https://apple.co/4aEgENoSubscribe to Wondery+: https://wondery /plus/See Privacy Policy at https://art19 /privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19 /privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Impersonator: 4

The Impersonator: 4

Investigators think they know who killed the Hargan women, but can't seem to get a confession. Then, a representative from Capital One bank sent them recordings of some strange phone calls made the day before the shootings. Someone pretending to be Pamela Hargan called the bank wanting a wire transfer for hundreds of thousands of dollars. Those recordings would expose a motive.Get early, ad-free access to episodes of Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings by subscribing to 48 Hours Plus on Apple Podcasts or Wondery+ on the Wondery app. The series is widely available everywhere else you get your podcasts.Subscribe to 48 Hours+: https://apple.co/4aEgENoSubscribe to Wondery+: https://wondery /plus/See Privacy Policy at https://art19 /privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19 /privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Toe on the Trigger: 5

Toe on the Trigger: 5

Detectives finally arrest a suspect in the Hargan family murders. But at trial, defense attorneys argue a new theory for how the killings might have happened. And that theory might cast enough doubt to throw the entire trial into question.Get early, ad-free access to episodes of Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings by subscribing to 48 Hours Plus on Apple Podcasts or Wondery+ on the Wondery app. The series is widely available everywhere else you get your podcasts.Subscribe to 48 Hours+: https://apple.co/4aEgENoSubscribe to Wondery+: https://wondery /plus/See Privacy Policy at https://art19 /privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19 /privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Aftermath: 6

The Aftermath: 6

How to make sense of this incomprehensible tragedy? Detective Brian Byerson has been in touch with Ashley Hargan weekly since her mother and sister were killed. She not only testified at trial; she made some dramatic moves after she discovered the truth.Get early, ad-free access to episodes of Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings by subscribing to 48 Hours Plus on Apple Podcasts or Wondery+ on the Wondery app. The series is widely available everywhere else you get your podcasts.Subscribe to 48 Hours+: https://apple.co/4aEgENoSubscribe to Wondery+: https://wondery /plus/See Privacy Policy at https://art19 /privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19 /privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.