The Impersonator | Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings

Summary

Trained to Kill: The Dog Trainer, the Heiress, and the Bodyguard Episode: The Impersonator | Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings Host: Peter Van Sant, 48 Hours Correspondent Release Date: May 29, 2024

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Overview

In the gripping episode titled "The Impersonator | Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings," CBS News' 48 Hours correspondent Peter Van Sant delves deep into the mysterious and tragic murders of Pamela and Helen Hargan. The episode meticulously unravels the series of events leading up to the killings, the suspicious phone calls that ensued, and the ensuing investigation that pointed towards Megan Hargan, Pamela's daughter.

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The Suspicious Wire Transfer Calls

Initial Fraud Alert: The episode begins with a critical phone call intercepted by Capital One Bank employees concerning a dubious wire transfer request from Pamela Hargan's account.

• [01:14] Narrator: "The phone call you're hearing is from July 13, 2017, the day before Helen and Pamela Hargan were found dead inside their home in McLean, Virginia."

• [01:56] Jeff (Capital One): "I've got a customer, Pamela Hargan, who, when I called her back, she did not call in to create a wire request. And she is the only signer on this account."

Despite Pamela's immediate denial and suspicion about the legitimacy of the bank's call, a substantial wire transfer of approximately $419,000 was attempted, later identified as unauthorized.

Notable Quote:

• [03:35] Jeff: "Well, no, I know he called you because pending wire, and then you told him that you didn't do any wires. Is that correct?"
• [03:42] Pamela Hargan: "Correct. Correct."

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Unmasking the Impersonator

Detective Investigation: Following the murders on July 14, 2017, detectives revisited the suspicious Capital One calls. They played back the recordings to Pamela's family and began piecing together inconsistencies that pointed towards Megan Hargan.

• [04:35] Detective: "Do we think we killed your mom? Absolutely."

Discrepancies Identified: Upon closer examination, detectives realized that the voice on the suspicious calls did not match Pamela's. The impersonator accurately answered security questions, suggesting intimate knowledge of Pamela's personal details.

• [05:43] Narrator: "Pamela Hargan:* 'I was just transferred to you. I was told that I could do a wire transfer online.'"

Notable Quote:

• [12:32] Pamela Hargan: "Good morning. Thank you for calling Kapwan Bank. My name is Brooks. Would you tell me your name, please? Pamela hampton Hargan."

The detectives suspected Megan Hargan, given her knowledge of her mother's accounts and the precise amount she attempted to transfer.

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Confrontation and Confession

Police Interview: Megan Hargan was brought in for questioning five days after the murders. Detectives played the recorded calls, confronting her with the evidence.

• [13:43] Detective: "Listen. Is that your mom? Come on, man."

• [15:14] Detective: "You shot your mom."

Emotional Breakdown: Under intense pressure, Megan began to waver, showing signs of remorse and eventually confessing to the murders.

• [16:14] Detective: "All this looks like you killed your mom and sister. So help us."

• [16:47] Megan Hargan: "What you're not saying is no, I did kill my mom."

Notable Quote:

• [19:55] Megan Hargan: "That's fine. There's nothing. Just blame me."

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The Road to Arrest

Ongoing Investigation: Despite Megan's initial denials and evasions, accumulating circumstantial evidence led the police to pursue her arrest. Her attempt to start a new life in West Virginia only heightened suspicions.

• [25:47] Narrator: "Megan's friend Rebecca Wolf was skeptical that the police had a strong case against her."

Grand Jury Proceedings: After a prolonged investigation lasting over a year, prosecutors convened a grand jury that ultimately indicted Megan for the murders of her mother and sister.

• [27:12] Detective: "All of those investigative steps took almost a year and four months before we had everything back and we got the okay to indict her for those two murders."

Final Arrest: The decisive moment occurred when Megan was returned to Virginia from West Virginia, leading to her arrest without resistance.

• [27:37] Detective: "We had a local officer conduct a traffic stop on her and she was arrested."

Notable Quote:

• [27:57] Detective: "When I look at Megan, I don't see much behind those eyes. It's kind of empty to me. She has no remorse for what she did at all."

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Aftermath and Reflections

Public and Family Reaction: The community was left reeling as the truth emerged, replacing the initial assumption of a murder-suicide with a double homicide committed by a trusted family member.

• [29:03] Reporter (Rebecca Wolf): "Why'd you wait 18 months to arrest her?"

Detective Insights: Detective Brian Byerson highlighted the complexities of murder investigations, especially when involving family members, emphasizing the need for incontrovertible evidence before proceeding with charges.

• [24:50] Detective Byerson: "Murder investigations can be extremely complex... we not only have to be sure, we have to be right."

Impact on the Community: Megan's actions shattered the Hargan family's facade, leading to profound questions about trust, deception, and the lengths one might go to secure financial security.

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Conclusion

"The Impersonator | Blood is Thicker: The Hargan Family Killings" offers a riveting exploration of betrayal within a family, the meticulous nature of white-collar crimes, and the challenges law enforcement faces in unraveling such cases. Through detailed narratives, compelling interviews, and critical evidence examination, Peter Van Sant presents a story that underscores the devastating consequences of deception and obsession.

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Notable Quotes Summary:

• Jeff (Capital One): "[03:35] 'Well, no, I know he called you because pending wire, and then you told him that you didn't do any wires. Is that correct?'"

• Detective: "[13:43] 'Listen. Is that your mom? Come on, man.'"

• Megan Hargan: "[15:14] 'You shot your mom.'"

• Detective Byerson: "[24:50] 'Murder investigations can be extremely complex... we not only have to be sure, we have to be right.'"

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This comprehensive summary encapsulates the intricate details and emotional depth of the Hargan family case, providing listeners with a thorough understanding of the events and the investigative journey that led to uncovering the truth behind the tragic murders.

Transcript

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[Narrator]

Thank you.

[Jeff]

For calling Capital One Bank. My name is Jeff. May I have your name, please? Hey, Jeff. My name is Felix. I'm also with Capital One. I've got a customer, Pamela Hargan.

[Narrator]

The phone call you're hearing is from July 13, 2017, the day before Helen and Pamela Hargan were were found dead inside their home in McLean, Virginia. On the call, two employees from Capital One bank are talking about Pamela Hargan. Earlier that day, someone had called the bank asking to transfer hundreds of thousands of dollars from Pamela's account. Felix is with the wire callback authentication team. He's trying to speak with Pamela to confirm that that the request had come from her. Here's Felix talking to his colleague.

[Jeff]

I've got a customer, Pamela Hargan, who, when I called her back, she did not call in to create a wire request. And she is the only signer on this account.

[Narrator]

So whoever requested that wire transfer wasn't.

[Jeff]

Pamela, and she asked us to transfer her to you guys for fraud because it looks like they tried to send out a $419,000 wire request. Yeah, you know, just, you know, chump change.

[Narrator]

Before he brings Pamela into the conversation, Felix warns Jeff that she's suspicious that they're really bank employees.

[Jeff]

She was a little bit wary, you know, not trusting that we were actually, CapitalMoney's calling her.

[Narrator]

Felix puts Pamela on the line with Jeff, and she is immediately skeptical.

[Pamela Hargan]

Hello? Yes, hello.

[Jeff]

Hi. Who am I speaking to?

[Pamela Hargan]

Who am I speaking to?

[Jeff]

My name is Jeff with Capital One.

[Pamela Hargan]

Okay. This is Pamela Hanson Hargan.

[Narrator]

At this point, Pamela has only been told that someone tried to move money from her account. Jeff is about to tell her that. How much?

[Jeff]

I do have your account in front of me. So I hear that somebody tried to do a wire out of Your account for 400 and some odd thousand dollars.

[Pamela Hargan]

What?

[Jeff]

Yeah, that's what the other was saying. 400 and some odd thousand, he said.

[Narrator]

Pamela is stunned and insists she never agreed to any such transfer.

[Pamela Hargan]

I did not do that.

[Jeff]

Well, no, I know he called you because pending wire, and then you told him that you didn't do any wires. Is that correct?

[Pamela Hargan]

Correct. Correct. Okay.

[Jeff]

Okay. You made me nervous for a minute.

[Pamela Hargan]

Those. Those accounts are not to be touched, period. Can you freeze all my accounts?

[Jeff]

Yeah, yeah, actually, I've already done that.

[Narrator]

Police would later explain that Pamela was on her way to Pennsylvania to meet with her daughter Ashley, when she got this call. She asked her other daughter, Megan, who was still home in McLean, Virginia, to go into the bank and figure out what was going on. In the meantime, Jeff from Capital One reassures Pamela, you don't need to worry.

[Jeff]

Your funds are safe.

[Pamela Hargan]

All right. Thank you.

[Jeff]

You're more than welcome. You have a great day.

[Pamela Hargan]

You as well. Thank you. Bye.

[Jeff]

Bye.

[Narrator]

Pamela was adamant she wasn't the one who initiated the wire transfer. So who did? After the killings, police went back and listened to the mystery caller.

[Pamela Hargan]

Thank you for calling Kappa One day. My name is Brooks. Would you tell me your name, please? Pamela Hansen Harkins.

[Narrator]

Do you recognize that voice? Detectives thought they did.

[Megan Hargan]

Do we think we killed your mom? Absolutely.

[Pamela Hargan]

Oh, my God.

[Narrator]

I'm Peter van Sant from 48 Hours. This is Blood Is Thicker. The Hargan family killings episode 4 the impersonator after Pamela and Helen Hargan were found dead on Friday, July 14, 2017, police learned about that call made to Capitol One the day before the murders. It was baffling. So they listened to the call a little more closely.

[Pamela Hargan]

Good morning. Thank you for calling Capital One Bank. My name is Brooks. Would you tell me your name, please? Pamela Hansen Hargan.

[Narrator]

This is the earlier call from that same day. The caller claimed to be Pamela Hargan, but the voice sounded different.

[Pamela Hargan]

I was just transferred to you. I was told that I could do a wire transfer online. Not able to do a wire online, but I can try to Help you buy phones.

[Narrator]

The caller said she needed the money for her daughter who was closing on her new house that day.

[Pamela Hargan]

What time is the closing? In 20 minutes. Okay. It's very unlikely it will be there in 20 minutes.

[Narrator]

Brooke with Capital One told the caller that someone would call her back to verify the details. And if everything checked out, the funds would be released an hour or so after that.

[Pamela Hargan]

Can you also verify. Because my phone numbers were inverted, I think on my account. This is my home phone number and this is where I'm at. So this is the phone number that needs to be used. I just don't want to miss anything. Right, right. And the number that you gave me matched what we have on file.

[Narrator]

Police discovered that the caller, clearly not Pamela, answered the multiple choice security questions accurately.

[Pamela Hargan]

All right, next question. What color is your 1991 Chevrolet Cavalier? Is it black, chrome, green, yellow, or you've never been associated with this vehicle? Never been associated with a Cavalier? All right.

[Narrator]

This caller, posing as Pamela also knew she had other daughters.

[Pamela Hargan]

I'm going to be doing this again for my other daughter in about three weeks.

[Narrator]

Not suspecting any fraud, the Capital One employee then asked how much money she wanted transferred.

[Pamela Hargan]

Okay, let me get the exact amount. It's $419,034.77.

[Narrator]

That's the exact payment the real Pamela Hargan would cancel. About an hour later the next day, Capital One received yet another call from that woman, again purporting to be Pamela Hargan. At that time, the bank had no way of knowing that Pamela had been shot.

[Pamela Hargan]

May I have your first and last name, please? Pamela Hanson Hargan. Thank you. I understand you want to complete a.

[Jeff]

Wire transfer with us today.

[Pamela Hargan]

Yes, we attempted to yesterday and there was a bit of a mix up, so we would like to do it again now. Okay.

[Narrator]

This is where things unraveled for the impersonator. Remember Felix from earlier in the episode? Well, he happened to get assigned yet again to call Pamela Hargan to verify the wire transfer.

[Jeff]

Felix with Capital One.

[Megan Hargan]

Call me.

[Jeff]

Speak with Pamela Hanson.

[Pamela Hargan]

This is Shea Hanson Hartigan.

[Narrator]

This time this Pamela didn't seem to recognize Felix's voice or name.

[Pamela Hargan]

And may I please have your name?

[Jeff]

My name is Felix. We spoke yesterday.

[Pamela Hargan]

Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you said Stuart.

[Narrator]

Felix verified some personal information and the impersonator approve the transfer.

[Jeff]

Anything else I can help you with before I let you go?

[Pamela Hargan]

No, and thank you so much for yesterday. I really appreciate it.

[Jeff]

Yeah, no worries. Of course.

[Narrator]

Three days after the shootings, someone else from the bank's Fraud division called Detective Brian Byerson. The representative said that they saw the news of Pamela's murder and thought police might want to know about the wire transfers.

[Detective]

And the message basically reads, hey, this is who I am. This is who I'm with. Capital One Fraud. We saw the news regarding the murder or the death of Pamela Hargan.

[Narrator]

Capital One sent the police all the recordings of their calls. When detectives listened, they soon identified the phony Pamela. They recognized the voice as the sister who had gun residue on her hands, who talked their ears off. In a police interview five days after the shootings. This caller also said she needed money for a house in West Virginia. All signs were pointing to Megan Hargan.

[Detective]

So now we have a really, really, really good motive for murder. I think she thought she was going to get the money. We would think that this was a murder suicide. She would get her house and she would just be in West Virginia living her life. I don't think she ever thought that we'd figure this out.

[Narrator]

But detectives did catch on and planned to let Megan know. They asked her to come into the station for an update. Their plan was to play her the calls and see how she would react.

[Detective]

You know, when you call the bank to do a wire transfer, you know, they record the calls, right?

[Pamela Hargan]

Okay.

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[Narrator]

Megan arrived at the police station not knowing that investigators planned an audio ambush. Those capital one recordings. It was July 19, five days since the murders. Megan had been talking with detectives Brian Byerson and Steve Needles for nearly an Hour when they brought up those calls.

[Detective]

So one of the things that's always been bothering me a little bit.

[Nourish Representative]

Yeah.

[Detective]

Is that call. I'm gonna play the call for you.

[Pamela Hargan]

Okay.

[Narrator]

Good morning.

[Pamela Hargan]

Thank you for calling Kapwan Bank. My name is. Would you tell me your name, please? Pamela hampton Hargan. Hello, Ms. Hargan, thank you for using our automated system for verification. What can I do for you today? I was just transferred to you. I was told that I could do a wire online. No.

[Narrator]

They kept the audio playing while they peppered her with questions.

[Detective]

Were you with her or anything?

[Pamela Hargan]

Not able to do a wire online.

[Detective]

But I'm 20 Thursday morning. Yeah.

[Narrator]

Detective Byerson said he. He hoped she could explain something that happens on the call. Six minutes in, the caller impersonating Pamela asked the capital one employed to wait while they call someone else. Byerson suspected the caller was reaching out to her husband.

[Pamela Hargan]

Is it okay if I just give him a call to let him know that I'm actually doing this over the phone? Because they were panicking.

[Detective]

So it sounds like it's going to.

[Pamela Hargan]

Take forever with me at the bank. Okay, sure. Is that on? Sure. You just want to put me on a little bit phone. I can keep you on the phone while I do that. Okay. All right.

[Narrator]

Detective Byerson confronted Megan point blank.

[Detective]

Listen. Is that your mom? Come on, man.

[Megan Hargan]

It's time to tell the truth.

[Detective]

I know who that you called your husband.

[Pamela Hargan]

Okay.

[Detective]

And I know that because when I looked at your phone down for. Right.

[Narrator]

Armed with phone records, the detectives told Megan they know she called her husband at the same time the person in the recording makes a phone call. Initially, Megan didn't confess, but then she gave in.

[Detective]

Okay. Who is that on the phone?

[Pamela Hargan]

That's me.

[Detective]

It's you, right?

[Narrator]

The detectives didn't back off. They played her. The capital one call you heard at the top of this episode. The one detectives were certain was the real Pamela.

[Jeff]

Somebody tried to do a wire out of Your account for 400 and some odd thousand dollars.

[Pamela Hargan]

What?

[Narrator]

Suddenly, Megan started apologizing.

[Pamela Hargan]

I'm sorry. I'm sorry.

[Narrator]

The detectives kept pushing. They wanted Megan to say why she was sorry.

[Megan Hargan]

Just tell us the truth. That's all we want to know.

[Nourish Representative]

I need.

[Detective]

I have to understand this.

[Megan Hargan]

The problem is you can continue to lie.

[Pamela Hargan]

It just digs yourself a deeper hole. I was.

[Detective]

Listen, we.

[Pamela Hargan]

I'm fine. I'm fine. I'm fine.

[Narrator]

In the police video, you can see Detective Needles move his chair toward Megan just a foot or two away as he pressed her for answers.

[Megan Hargan]

You're trying to think right now. How am I going to talk my.

[Detective]

Way out of this?

[Pamela Hargan]

No, no. You think I.

[Detective]

Okay.

[Megan Hargan]

Do we think we killed your mom? Absolutely.

[Detective]

Yes.

[Pamela Hargan]

Oh, my God.

[Detective]

Yes, we do.

[Narrator]

In his rush to confront Megan, Detective Needles misspoke. They thought she killed Pamela.

[Megan Hargan]

She caught you wiring on Friday. Absolutely. Convince me that you didn't.

[Detective]

We have. You did not kill my mom.

[Narrator]

Right there, Megan whispered. I did not kill my mom. But cops had other new evidence to ask Megan about. There was also a bank statement. This was one of the financial documents Detective Julia Elliott spotted the day Helen and Pamela were murdered. Here's what Detective Elliott told us.

[Megan Hargan]

It was a photocopy of Pamela's spreadsheet.

[Pamela Hargan]

That she used for all her accounts.

[Megan Hargan]

Account numbers, and passcodes. It was also a photocopy of Pamela's bank statement.

[Narrator]

Detective Elliott had photographed the documents. But when detectives returned with a warrant to collect them, they were gone. Detectives had learned that Megan sent the West Virginia real estate agent a bank statement with her name on it. But suspiciously, the amount sent matched what was in her mother's bank account, not hers. The detectives presented Megan with their theory. She shot her mother, then her sister Helen.

[Megan Hargan]

All this looks like you killed your mom and sister. So help us.

[Pamela Hargan]

Helen would have let me go.

[Narrator]

Megan's saying no way her sister would have let her walk away if she'd shot their mother.

[Megan Hargan]

What you're not saying is no, I did kill her.

[Pamela Hargan]

No, no, no. I said no. I did.

[Narrator]

That's Detective Needles laughing. He's signaling that he didn't believe her. Finally, the detectives decided to tell her exactly what they think happened and how they think. Pamela was already dead by the time Capital one got the second request to make a wire transfer.

[Detective]

I already know that your mom is dead when that phone call is made.

[Narrator]

Detective Byerson said he thought Megan shot Pamela before she called the bank on July 14th. Remember, someone had covered Pamela's body with a quilt. They also found her cell phone set on top of a pool of blood, leaning against the quilt.

[Detective]

How does her phone get over to where her body. And set on top of where she's found?

[Pamela Hargan]

She always carries her.

[Detective]

No. No, she couldn't have. Listen.

[Pamela Hargan]

No, I'm sorry, okay?

[Detective]

It's fine.

[Pamela Hargan]

Okay?

[Detective]

I'm telling you. I'm telling you where her phone is found. She didn't drop it there. It's impossible.

[Narrator]

Detective Needles leaned in again, directly accusing Megan.

[Megan Hargan]

You shot your mom.

[Pamela Hargan]

No, I did not.

[Megan Hargan]

You covered her up with a blanket because you couldn't live with the guilt.

[Pamela Hargan]

Oh, no.

[Megan Hargan]

And then you used her phone and you got your money for your settlement, but the bank was already on to.

[Pamela Hargan]

You, and nobody was ever gonna come to the house.

[Megan Hargan]

You had thought that through yet. Then why does your sister call.

[Pamela Hargan]

I do not know.

[Megan Hargan]

And tell him the truth?

[Narrator]

Remember Helen? The youngest sister had called her boyfriend.

[Pamela Hargan]

I do know.

[Megan Hargan]

Because he spends an hour trying to call 911.

[Pamela Hargan]

I do know.

[Megan Hargan]

To make sure the love of his life is fine.

[Narrator]

Meanwhile, unknown to Megan, Ashley and Steve Hargan, Megan's sister and father were listening to these same bank calls in another room in the police station, along with Megan's husband, Frank.

[Megan Hargan]

What you're not realizing is your family's being told all this stuff right now.

[Pamela Hargan]

I know.

[Detective]

Yeah. Right now. They're going to be swimming and quite. They're going to be. They're up there right now.

[Narrator]

The interview went on and on. The detectives dug into more details about the wire transfer. They accused Megan of lying.

[Detective]

That's a complete lie. Why in the world would you lie to me? If I. I'm here investigating the murder of your mother and the death of your sister, which is undetermined as to how she died. Okay. You understand what I'm saying? I'm investigating that during that investigation to try to figure out what happened to the two people you're supposed to love.

[Narrator]

And then Megan seemed to break. She seemed to contemplate her child growing up motherless.

[Pamela Hargan]

Blame me. Blame me. Listen, my family's been through enough. Let Molly grow up without me.

[Detective]

You have got to unload this blame me.

[Pamela Hargan]

That's fine. There's nothing. Just blame me.

[Narrator]

Megan seemed to be crumbling, but detectives still didn't have what they needed. A full confession. Detectives established they had plenty of circumstantial evidence. But only a few days after the shootings, they needed more that could stand up in court. So the question was, would Megan confess?

[Pamela Hargan]

The missing child is Lucia Blix, 9 years old.

[Megan Hargan]

Please let her come back home safely tonight.

[Pamela Hargan]

The kidnappers plumbed it meticulously.

[Narrator]

If money is what it takes to.

[Pamela Hargan]

Get her back, we're gonna pay it. The secrets they hide. You can't talk about this.

[Megan Hargan]

You can't write about it.

[Pamela Hargan]

Are the clues. The mother's hiding something. I know it. To find her, tell me where she is. The stolen girl. Tonight at 10 on Freeform and stream on Hulu.

[Detective]

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[Narrator]

Megan Hargan had come into the police station around 5 o'clock in the evening.

[Megan Hargan]

There's been some issues over the last couple hours talking.

[Pamela Hargan]

I'm sorry, I'm sorry. It's hard.

[Narrator]

And Megan was still there nearly four and a half hours later. Again and again she denied making the Capital One calls. And then suddenly her story changed.

[Megan Hargan]

At that point, had she given you approval to act like her and to wire transfer?

[Pamela Hargan]

Yes. She even sent me the Capital One bank to verify that everything had been frozen.

[Narrator]

Megan not only admitted to making the calls, she claimed Pamela wanted her to be the one to request the wire transfer. Despite the fact her mother was on tape saying she knew nothing of that transfer. Megan was starting to sound defeated.

[Megan Hargan]

So during this whole process, you know, many, many times you said, blame me, blame me, blame me, just blame me. I know, but why? I would think you'd be more concerned with Molly.

[Narrator]

Molly is Megan's daughter.

[Pamela Hargan]

I am concerned about Molly.

[Megan Hargan]

But if you're locked up forever and ever, amen. What happens to Molly?

[Pamela Hargan]

She has my husband.

[Narrator]

Megan still hadn't admitted she had anything to do with the murders of her mother and sister. So she could walk away from this interview at any time. The door was wide open, though. She didn't seem to understand that I'm.

[Pamela Hargan]

Not allowed to go.

[Megan Hargan]

Actually, I Already told you that from the very beginning.

[Detective]

Of course you are.

[Megan Hargan]

You're free to leave.

[Pamela Hargan]

I'm allowed to stand up and walk out. Why would I do that when you guys are accusing me of something like this? I don't understand. You're saying you think I did this, but I'm allowed to leave?

[Narrator]

Megan thought she was being played.

[Pamela Hargan]

No, because you told me that you guys had detected us telling my family everything that you believe I did this.

[Megan Hargan]

That's our belief. Right now, you're a prime suspect. Absolutely. That doesn't mean that we're locking you up and taking you to jail tonight. We're just talking.

[Narrator]

What Megan didn't realize was at the time of this interview, the case against her was relatively weak. Later, I asked Detective Byerson about this after the police interview. He told me the investigation was far from over.

[Detective]

So murder investigations can be extremely complex. And especially in something like this, where you have a family member who you believe has killed almost her entire family, her entire immediate family, other than her father and her middle sister, you not only have to be sure, you have to be right. And that decision is not just. It does not just rest on me. I can't just go to the. To the magistrate and swear out a murder warrant.

[Narrator]

So Megan left that day with her family, a free woman. Days go by, no arrest. Weeks turn into months. During this time, Megan and her husband used a VA loan to buy additional home in West Virginia. Megan's friend, Rebecca Wolf, told us that Megan decided to start a new life out of state. She immediately got involved in her new community.

[Nourish Representative]

So Molly is getting settled in her new school, settled in her new Girl Scout troop, finding the new church, getting settled into the church.

[Narrator]

Rebecca said that Megan went to work with her at her pet rescue.

[Nourish Representative]

I had held a huge fundraiser for one of the rescue missions that we worked with, so she actually helped me set the whole thing up. So we spent several months researching vendors, getting vendors locked on Megan.

[Narrator]

Her husband and Molly were finally all under their own roof, together at last. But Megan was in a kind of limbo because the investigators still had her in their sights. I asked Byerson if Megan had killed her mother and sister, then that would mean a brutal killer was free to kill again during all those months.

[Detective]

All I can say to that is we kept an eye on her. We knew where she was.

[Narrator]

Prosecutors in Virginia convened a grand jury to look at the evidence and. And decide whether Megan should be charged. Investigators had to wait for documents. Forensic accountants had to comb through layers of records, which also delayed any possible Indictment.

[Detective]

All of those investigative steps took almost a year and four months before we had everything back and we got the okay to indict her for those two murders.

[Narrator]

Megan's borrowed time was coming to an end. Detective Byerson and a team of Officers made the three hour drive from the D.C. area to Morgantown.

[Detective]

We all went up there. Megan Hargan that morning, dropped her daughter off at school. And once she left school grounds, we had a local officer conduct a traffic stop on her and she was arrested.

[Narrator]

Detective Byerson and Megan came face to face again. What did you see in her eyes?

[Detective]

Nothing. When I look at Megan, I don't see much behind those eyes. It's kind of empty to me. She has no remorse for what she did at all.

[Narrator]

Megan was taken to a local police station in West Virginia for another interview before she was brought back to Northern Virginia. That same day, the Fairfax County Police Department updated the public at a news conference for the first time since they called the killings a murder suicide.

[Pamela Hargan]

We did arrest 35 year old Megan Hargan in West Virginia this morning for the murders of her mom Pamela Hargan and sister Helen Hargan, July 14, 2017 in McLean.

[Narrator]

Understandably, reporters had questions.

[Pamela Hargan]

Could I ask them why you didn't put out another directive to the public that it was a double murder? Because that community had so many questions. They were told it was a murder suicide and then, you know, you all knew it was a double murder all along. Do you not think maybe the public should have been informed of that?

[Narrator]

Yeah. So we always strive to inform our community. This community case in particular. We'll always debrief what we did and why we did it. I will say an investigative strategy is to find the person that's responsible for double murder is of utmost importance. The fact that cops had waited so long made Megan's friend Rebecca Wolf skeptical that they had a strong case.

[Nourish Representative]

Why'd you wait 18 months to arrest her?

[Narrator]

Rebecca learned Megan had been arrested while she was listening to the radio on her way home from yoga.

[Nourish Representative]

I never in a million years saw this coming. And I heard that name and thank God I was turning into my road at that point because I probably would have wrecked because I just immediately started bawling.

[Narrator]

She thought this had to be a mistake. After the arrest, Rebecca traveled to be at Megan's trial. And the Hargans, they had to face the possibility that Megan might have pinned the murders on her sister Helen. And why then did Helen have to die?

[Detective]

I think Helen knew what happened. I mean, we'll never understand. I don't think in any capacity why it is that Megan went upstairs and told her that she had shot their mother. I have no idea why she did that. I can only assume that at some point after telling her that, she realized that was probably not a great idea.

[Narrator]

From 48 hours this is blood Is Thicker the Hargan family killings. Judy Tygard is the executive producer of 48 Hours, original reporting by 48 Hours producers Josh Yeager, Sarah Ely Hulse, Michelle Sigona and Lauren White. Jamie Benson is the senior producer for Paramount Audio and Maura Walls is the senior story editor. Recording assistants from Alan Penguin and Marlon Polycarp. Special thanks to Paramount Podcast Vice President Megan Marcus and 48 Hours senior producer Peter Schweitzer. Blood is Thicker is produced by Sony Music Entertainment. It was written and produced by Alex Schuman. Our executive producers are Kathryn St. Louis and Jonathan Hirsch. Our associate producer is Zoe Culkin. Theme and original music composed by Honsdale Shee. He also sound, designed and mixed the episodes. We also use music by Blue Dot Sessions. Kathryn Newhan is our fact checker. Our production managers are Tamika Balance Kolasni and Samantha Allison. I'm Peter Van so if you're enjoying the show, be sure to rate and review. It helps more people find it and hear our reporting. For early and ad free access to Blood is thicker. Subscribe to 48 Hours plus on Apple Podcasts or Wondry plus on the Wondry app. Start your free trial today. Thanks for listening.