A shocking revelation unfolds as an 11-year-old girl identifies her sister's secret boyfriend as the prime suspect in her father's murder.
In a revealing interview with "48 Hours," 18-year-old Sierra Friar recounts the harrowing events of October 2, 2017, when her father, Aaron, and her 15-year-old sister, Ellie, vanished without a trace.
At approximately 5:30 a.m., Sierra was abruptly awakened by her father's frantic shouts and the sound of glass breaking. Overcome with fear, she stayed in her room until she felt it was safe to venture out.
When the clock struck 6:15 a.m. and silence enveloped the house, Sierra cautiously stepped out to discover her father and sister were gone. The living room was a disturbing sight, with blood splattered on the walls and shards of glass from a broken light fixture strewn across the floor. In a state of alarm, she called for help.
Sierra was taken to her mother, Maggie Friar's, nearby residence.
A mother's urgent call for assistance.
At 6:42 a.m., Maggie Friar made a desperate 911 call, saying, "Something has happened, and we can't find my ex-husband or my oldest daughter… there’s blood everywhere."
The search for Aaron and Ellie Friar began.
Just a minute later, at 6:43 a.m., police officers from Medford, Oregon, were dispatched to Aaron Friar's home to perform a welfare check, officially initiating a missing persons investigation.
Officer Logan Boyd arrived and noticed a visible blood trail leading from the front door to a back gate that opened into an alley. The trail continued for a short distance before disappearing. Nearby, fresh tire tracks were found, indicating that Aaron Friar's vehicle was also reported missing.
Given the circumstances and the suspicious elements surrounding the disappearances, a call for the MADIU — Major Assault and Death Investigation Unit — was made.
All available personnel were summoned.
At 7:40 a.m., a notification was sent to all detectives of the Medford Police to report to the Friar residence.
Around 9 a.m., Detective Shannon Reynolds interviewed Sierra, who disclosed that she had been in her bedroom but peeked out her window to see Ellie’s boyfriend, Gavin MacFarlane, standing outside. She mentioned that MacFarlane was not allowed at the house, as Aaron Friar had explicitly told Ellie to end the relationship after discovering he was 19 years old.
This became a significant lead for law enforcement. Detectives began monitoring MacFarlane's mobile phone activity.
At 9:52 a.m., Aaron Friar's vehicle was located about five miles from his home.
Authorities noted dried blood on the back bumper and found additional blood that had soaked into the trunk's carpet.
At 10:48 a.m. — four hours after law enforcement arrives at the scene of the crime at the Friar residence — Ellie is discovered unharmed, walking along a busy road just a few miles from her father's house.
She is accompanied by two men: her 19-year-old boyfriend, Gavin MacFarlane, and his 22-year-old friend, Russell Jones.
By 10:51 a.m., the trio is separated, handcuffed, and taken into custody for interrogation.
Lead detective Bill Ford opts to interview Jones first, knowing from past experience that "he's a talker."
Ford decides to employ a strategy he refers to as "smokin' and jokin'," taking Russell outside for a cigarette break.
Just over an hour after their detention, Jones informs Ford that he can lead him to the site where Aaron Friar's remains were discarded.
At 12:50 p.m., following Jones's guidance, Aaron Friar's remains are located wrapped in a green tarp and a Tinkerbell fleece blanket off a secluded highway, approximately 20 miles north of Friar's residence. This discovery shifts the case from a missing person investigation to a homicide inquiry.
At the same time, the murder weapon — a baseball bat — is found lodged in a tree about 8 feet above the ground. The cause of Aaron Friar's death would later be confirmed as blunt force trauma to the head.
Three suspects, three narratives
With the confirmation of Aaron Friar's murder, the police focus on their three suspects. Complicating the investigation, all three begin to accuse one another.
Jones claims that MacFarlane killed Aaron Friar in self-defense.
Ellie asserts that she believes Jones is responsible for her father's murder.
MacFarlane contends that it was Ellie who wanted Aaron Friar dead.
Three suspects, three pleas
In October 2018, Gavin MacFarlane pleads guilty to charges of murder and conspiracy to commit murder, receiving a sentence of 25 years to life.
In January 2019, Ellie pleads guilty to an adult charge of conspiring to murder her father, Aaron, and is subsequently sentenced to 25 years.
In August 2021, Russell Jones enters a no-contest plea to conspiracy to commit murder and is sentenced to 15 years.