Hidden True Crime - The Devil’s Den Murders: A Family Torn Apart, a Killer Unmasked | Andrew McGann

Episode Date: August 3, 2025

What really happened in Devil’s Den? A brutal double homicide, a vanishing suspect, and a community haunted by fear. About Hidden True Crime: What started as a simple conversation at their dinner table became a captivating podcast. Join the dynamic duo of Dr. John Matthias, a criminal psychologist, and Lauren Matthias, an investigative journalist, as they delve into the psychological facets of unthinkable crimes every week. Their unique perspectives and in-depth analysis offer a fresh take on true crime storytelling. Thank you for your support through sponsorships, subscribing, listening, and becoming a Patreon member at Patreon.com/hiddentruecrime Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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They give people a chance to breathe, reconnect with nature, and escape the constant budge of everyday life. Hiking, camping, quiet picnics. It's supposed to be peaceful. Devil's Den is one of those places. Tucked away in the Arkansas Ozark Mountains, deep in Lee Creek Valley. It's picture perfect with rugged rock formations, winding trails, a calm lake and mysterious caverns, generations of family.

have come here to unplug and unwind. But there's a legend to. Early settlers noticed steam, rising from the mouth of a cave on cold mornings. It gave them chills and not just from the temperature. They believed it was a gateway to something darker, a portal to the underworld. That's how it got its name, Devil's Den. And usually it is just a name. But not on Saturday, July 26, 2025.

That weekend, Kristen and Clinton Brink brought their two young daughters to Devil's Den for what should have been a quiet family getaway. Instead, they found themselves in the center of something they could never have imagined, something that turned their family trip into a nightmare. Despite the name Devil's Den is typically a little slice of heaven, but last week, the devil was very real, and he was waiting. This is a developing story, and trust me, you're going to want to follow because once you hear what happened to the Brink family, you will be left asking the same things we are. How could something so dark happen in a place so beautiful? And when will justice be served? Will justice be served? Clinton Brink was born in June of 1982 to parents Carrie and David Brink. And even though his parents divorced, he wasn't without support.

His stepfather Glenn stepped in and became a steady part of his upbringing. Together with his half-siblings, Clinton grew up in the warm, dry sprawl of Bakersfield, California, where he graduated from Foothill High School. In his early 20s, Clinton became a father himself. In December of 2005, he welcomed a baby girl named Brianna into the world. Things didn't work out with Brianna's mother, but that didn't stop Clinton from being a present, devoted dad. He shared custody, but from the outside looking in, it was clear that Brianna was his world. Photos, stories, and social media posts show that Clinton didn't just parent. He poured

himself into it. It wasn't always easy being a single father, but he seemed to take pride in doing the best he could for his daughter. Then in 2013, Kristen Trent came into the picture. Kristen was two years younger than Clinton, born in June of 1984 to Charles and Katie Trent. She was also raised in Bakersfield and graduated from Liberty High School. There she was known as a star volleyball player and even went on to play at California State University. She eventually went on to graduate from Miles Community College where she studied nursing. And from what we know, Kristen had a calm, nurturing energy. And when she and Clinton started dating, she fit naturally into the dynamic Clinton had built,

with his daughter, Brianna. By 2014, the three of them were inseparable. Clinton and Kristen tied the knot and she became a second mother figure to Brianna. They were like their own tight-knit little family. But two years into their life together, Kristen and Clinton made a big decision. They wanted to grow their family. In April of 2016, they welcomed a second daughter into the world. Then, just a year and a half later, in December of 2017, baby number three arrived, three daughters, a full house, and just like that, their little trio became a family of five. Clinton leaned into fatherhood with everything he had. He was the ultimate girl dad, the kind who showed up for every school event and probably knew how to braid hair better than most. He and Kristen's

world absolutely revolved around their girls. As a family, the Brinks loved spending time outdoors, parks, rivers, lakes, camping trips, if it involved fresh air, they were all in. Over the years, Clinton held several jobs, mostly in the drilling industry. After that, the couple both worked in the medical field with Clinton as a nurse's aide and Christian, a nurse on the floor of monument health in Rapid City, South Dakota. They also lived in Miles City, Montana, and while the scenery changed, the heart of their family didn't. No matter where they landed, they brought their sense of adventure with them. Denica Harrell, a nurse who worked at the rehabilitation center in Montana, remembers the Brink family fondly from the time they spent living there.

She recalled that Clinton and Kristen were active in their community and even played on a recreational volleyball team together. During the warmer months, the Brinks would set up a volleyball net at a nearby park and invite neighbors and friends to join in. It wasn't just about the game. It was about bringing people together. Harold shared that when she found herself in a tough spot with child care, the Brinks didn't hesitate.

They opened their home to her daughter without question. Kristen would even return the little girl home with a warm plate of food in hand. They gave without expecting anything in return. Herald was quoted as saying their love and support for the people around them. It was completely unconditional. Eventually, Clinton made a shift in his career. He took a job as a driver for Prairie Farms Dairy, a company known for its reach across the Midwest and South.

This seemed like the kind of change that would give the family some roots. And so in the summer of 2025, just about a month ago, the Brinks packed up once more and relocated to Prairie Grove, Arkansas, a quiet, tucked away towns surrounded by hills and farmland. Clinton had been transferred to Hillland Dairy, one of Prairie Farm's regional branches and was set to start his new delivery route on Monday, July 28th. The weekend before, the Brink family decided to do what they love most, get out and explore, with boxes still waiting to be unpacked, and the newness of Arkansas settling in, they figured there was no better way to get their bearings than to head into nature. They landed on Devil's Den State Park, a well-known gem, just 30 minutes from Prairie Grove, the kind of place that scene made for family adventures, rugged trails, flowing springs, towering bluffs, and waterfalls. Among its many trails, the Devil's Den's

self-guided trail stands out for being both beautiful as well as accessible. It's well-marked, not too steep and just the right length for families with younger children. The hike was just going to be Clinton, Kristen, and their two youngest daughters now seven and nine. Their oldest, Brianna is 19 now and starting her own life. She just got married just this past December, closing out 2024 with a wedding and a new chapter. So with Brianna off on her own, the goal was something light, something enjoyable, a quick hike, just challenging enough to wear the kids out and still be fun. maybe a few pictures, maybe a picnic, a simple day in the woods. No one could have known then what this peaceful outing meant to be a celebration of their new

beginning would end in tragedy. And what unfolded in those woods that day would leave more questions than answers. On the morning of Saturday, July 26, 2025, the Brink family set out for their day in Devil's Den. The air was thick with summer heat scorching and humid, the kind of weather that clings to your skin, but that didn't stop them. They were excited to explore their new surroundings determined to make the most of the weekend. But sometime around 2 p.m., that afternoon, their peaceful day turned into a literal nightmare. Though the full sequence of events is still being pieced together, again, this is a developing story. We know this much. The brinks were suddenly and violently attacked by a man right there on the trail in broad daylight. The suspect whose name we will get to later, was armed with a knife, and without warning, he turned that weapon on Clinton, stabbing him repeatedly right in front of his wife and daughters. Kristen did what any mother would do in a moment of sheer terror. She ran, not away, but to get her girls to safety. She pulled them from the scene,

told them to stay put. And then heartbreakingly, she turned back. She went back to help her husband. By then, it was too late for Clinton. And when she tried to intervene the attacker turned on her. Kristen was killed too. A quiet trail, a loving family, and in just moments, everything changed. The attacker fled the scene, vanishing into the woods,

and not long after, another hiker stumbled upon the brink family's two young daughters along the trail. The hiker quickly led the girls to safety, then retraced the path hoping to find their parents. What they found instead was horrifying. Clinton and Kristen brings bodies. The hiker rushed the children to the park's visitor center, and authorities were called immediately.

In the state park that we need to respondent to. Mediq 4 and Strickler, Washington County received a call from the visitor center. Two children are there. They advised that their parents were assaulted. One was possibly stabbed. The parents are missing. What followed was rapid and intense, an investigation, a fast one. one aimed at uncovering who could commit such a brutal and senseless act and why.

Arkansas State Police wasted no time. Within hours, Devil's Den was shut down. Rangers and investigators began canvassing the trails, talking to hikers who had been in the park that day. They were hoping, desperately, that someone had seen or heard something, a strange noise, a shadowy figure, anything that could crack open this senseless crime. They urged visitors to comb through their photos and videos, cell phones, gopros, anything from that Saturday.

Nearby residents were asked to check their home security footage and game cameras for anything unusual. And within 48 hours, the FBI was brought in and with help from the public, a sketch of a possible person of interest was developed. That sketch was released to the public along with a photo, one taken by a visitor, showing a man from behind, staring out into the trees. It's still unclear why the hiker took that photo. Maybe it was instinct. Maybe they sensed something was off. Sometimes our gut tells us more than our eyes ever could. The man in the image was described by multiple people. Long-sleeved shirt with sleeves pushed up, dark pants, dark baseball cap, sunglasses, a black backpack, and fingerless gloves. A strange choice of outfit for a summer hike. But then again, nothing about this case was making much sense. Back at the scene, investigators found a significant, amount of blood, but not all of it belonged to Kristen and Clinton. The pattern and volume,

it suggested something else. The attacker may have been injured during the assault. And if that's the case, he didn't just leave destruction behind. He left behind his DNA. Forensic teams collected the blood hoping to develop a profile. If the suspect was hurt badly enough, that DNA could be the key to identifying him. Because even when a killer tries to vanish, Blood doesn't lie. One witness told investigators that he saw a man walking out of the trail with what appeared to be blood on his face. That man was then seen leaving the park in a black four-door sedan and was said to resemble

the composite sketch. After reviewing security footage from nearby roads and park entrances, they narrowed it down. The car looked like a sportier model, possibly a Mazda. But one detail stood out right away. The license plate was obscured, covered with what appeared to be alexible. or maybe duct tape. Either way, it wasn't accidental. That's small, but significant detail told investigators something chilling. This wasn't a spur of the moment act. Whoever did this

had come prepared. He took steps to hide his identity before the attack ever happened. Before I switched to Wellfront, my APY was probably 0.1. Once I switched to Ching, with a Wellfront cash account, earn up to 4.2% APY on your cash. I can trust Wellfront. Front is taking care of me. Make your money earn more. Get started at Wealthfront.com. Clients clients were paid $1,000 for their testimonials, creating a conflict of interest. Howcomes vary. 3.3%. Base API P-Y as of January 30th, 2020, is representative variable and earned on funds $1.65% new client boost for three months on up to $150,000. Direct deposit $1,000 a month and fund an investing account for a 0.25% increase. Cash account offered by Wealthfront Brokerage

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Homeowners and local businesses along the car suspected route were asked to turn over any security footage. Coming through hundreds of clips, investigators were finally able to make a positive ID, not on the person, but on the vehicle. What was initially thought to be a sportier black sedan turned out to be a black Kia Stinger. And with that confirmed detail, detectives took the next logical step. They began pulling DMV records, compiling a list of individuals who owned that make and model in the area. From there, they started cross-referencing those names with witness descriptions from the park that day. That's when one name rose to the top, Andrew James McGahn. So who is Andrew James McGahn?

Well, on paper, he's not someone you'd expect to be at the center of a murder investigation. In fact, quite the opposite. Andrew was someone people generally trusted. He was a teacher. 28-year-old Andrew McGahn was born August of 1996 to Michael and Marine McGahn. He grew up in Oklahoma with his brother Jack. And after high school, Andrew's path took him through several colleges, Northern Illinois University, the University of Illinois at Chicago, Tulsa Community College, and eventually in

2022, he graduated from Oklahoma State University with a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education, a degree that was supposed to launch him into a career-shaping young minds. Andrew's teaching career started at Donald Elementary down in Flower Mound, Texas. But he didn't stay there long. He moved on to the Broken Arrow School District. in Oklahoma, and then again to San Springs, also in his home state. By June of 2025, he had been hired as a teacher candidate for the upcoming school year at Bayari Elementary, part of the Springdale School District in Arkansas. That's several different schools in just a few years. And in the

world of education, that kind of job hopping can sometimes raise eyebrows. Then there's what happened in Texas. After his time at Donald Elementary, a district spokesperson confirmed that Andrew was placed on administrative leave in the spring of 2023. The reason? Concerns about his classroom management, professional judgment, and apparent favoritism toward certain students. Now, according to the district, an internal investigation found no evidence of inappropriate conduct with students.

But still, Andrew resigned from the district just a few weeks later in May of 2023, and the students spent the rest of the year with a substitute teacher. It doesn't prove anything, but it does. raise a question. Was this an early sign that something about Andrew McGahn wasn't quite right? Digging deeper into Andrew's past, some unsettling stories have started to surface, not from police reports, but from parents whose children had once been in his classroom. One of those parents was Sierra Markham. Her son had Andrew as a fourth grade teacher. Sierra described him as distant, even cold. He was pretty cold. She actually said that. And she also said, you could ask him a question.

and he would give you a one-word response. Overall, just seemed pretty disinterested in his students, end quote. But that wasn't everyone's experience. In fact, others described something more troubling. Some students and their parents said McGahn appeared to show a noticeable preference for the girls in his classroom. He was described as overly affectionate, even touchy. One mother, Lindsay Poliak, said she and other parents began raising concerns that Andrew wasn't just failing to teach their kids properly.

but that his behavior towards some students crossed a line. According to Lindsay, her son told her that Andrew would often give out candy or special prizes, but mostly to the girls. She remember going to school events and noticing a group of female students flocking around him. And then came something even more concerning. In early May, late April, Lindsay recalled, other parents started telling me he was having special lunches during the lunch break. all the kids would go to the cafeteria, but he would ask some of the special girls to stay in his classroom and eat with him, which was weird, end quote. Even more disturbing were the allegations that he had encouraged some girls to sit in his lap during these lunches.

Now, these are allegations not proven facts. But when taken together with his resignation from the Texas district, the concerns about favoritism and the multiple school transfers, it starts to paint a deeply unsettling picture. Andrew was also reportedly awkward around parents. Some described him as struggling to make eye contact during conferences and said he often came off as uncomfortable or distant in those interactions. But not everything said about him was negative. While he was considered pretty quiet, many of his students actually seemed to like him. In fact, Andrew even started a running club for the kids, something that would normally be seen as going above and beyond in an elementary school setting. To become a teacher, Andrew would have had to pass multiple background checks in each district he worked for.

And according to available records, there's no indication that he was ever formally disciplined for any kind of inappropriate behavior or had a criminal history. Still, when trying to make sense of a crime, this brutal, this inexplicable, these pieces of his personality, both the good and the bad, become relevant. Because they might help us understand what's hidden. How does someone like Andrew McGahn become the center of a murder investigation? While after investigators finally linked Andrew McGahn to the case through his vehicle, the search quickly intensified. Using cell tower data, authorities were able to narrow down his location. Just five days after the murders, they found his black Kia parked outside a small local business, the Pitas Beauty Salon and Barbershop in Springdale, Arkansas.

That's about 30 minutes drive from Devil's Den. Inside the shop, Andrew was sitting calmly in the chair mid-haircut. Adriana, Guadalupe Ruiz of Valos, a barber at Lupita's later recalled that she had only been cutting his hair for about five minutes when a police officer walked in and asked who drives the black car parked outside. She said Andrew paused just for a moment before quietly admitting that the car was his. The officer then began asking him questions right there in the middle of the shop and then, He was taken into custody. His haircut still unfinished. Adriana also told police something a bit odd.

Before the officer even walked in, Andrew had refused to write his name in the salon sign-in book. She thought it was strange, but simply brushed it off until moments later, when police and detectives arrived. Later that day, she posted on Facebook, quote, So I'm cutting a guy's hair and I'm shaking because now there are cops and detectives told them I haven't swept up. the hair in case they need it and they said they did. Y'all, I'm shaking, mostly because it's starting

to look like it could be the man they're looking for, but not too sure yet, end quote. Well, it turns out it was. This was the man they were looking for. Now, was Andrew in that barber's chair to change his appearance and throw investigators off his trail, possibly, but authorities also noted that the timing lined up with something much more mundane. School was set to start in about a week and a fresh haircut wouldn't have been unusual for a teacher preparing for the first day back. But regardless of the reason, this ordinary trip to the barbershop marked the end of Andrew McGahn's freedom. Back at the police station, it didn't take long for investigators to get the confirmation they needed. Andrew's DNA matched the blood found at the scene in Devil's Den.

In a press conference that followed, officials stated that Andrew made statements during questioning, statements that were described as similar to a confession. A subsequent search of of his home uncovered items consistent with the crime along with articles related to the murders suggesting he may have been following the investigation closely or even obsessively. Although everyone is innocent until proving guilty, we did confirm this morning that our suspects DNA has been a positive match to the DNA that we suspected to belong to our suspect at the scene. During an interview with investigators, the suspect, the suspect, indicated that he did commit these murders.

We executed a search warrant at his residence. There were articles found there that are consistent with being involved in this particular crime. And I will let Major Rhodes speak more of that, or more to those details. We do believe he acted alone. We have absolutely no reason to believe that there is anyone else involved.

And we do not anticipate any. future arrest or any other arrest beyond this suspect. But perhaps the most chilling detail of all, investigators say there is no known connection between Andrew McGahn and his victims, Clinton and Kristen Brink. No prior contact, no clear reason. As of now, no motive has been made public, leaving both the community and the victim's families

grappling with an even deeper sense of confusion and heartbreak. Andrew has been formally charged with two counts of capital murder. He made his first court appearance Friday morning, but has yet to enter a plea. He's currently being held without bond, and his next hearing is scheduled for August 25th. What led Andrew McGahn, a teacher, a seemingly ordinary man, to a brutal double murder in the middle of a state park in the middle of the day? That question remains unanswered, and with no official motive released, speculation has naturally filled the silence. Some have pointed to Andrew's alleged history with female students and wondered, could he have said something inappropriate to the girls on the trail? Could that have sparked a protective reaction from Clinton and Kristen that escalated into violence?

There's a speculation as well that were the girls, possibly the target, and their parents protected them? Clinton fought, and Kristen got them to safety. We don't know, though, the motive. Others have drawn unsettling comparisons between Andrew and other high-profile killers. like Brian Coburger. There's been talk online about the eerie look in his mugshot, about whether this was a thrill kill, a calculated, cold-blooded attack on total strangers

for no reason other than the experience itself. There are even theories that Andrew might have been under the influence of drugs or experiencing a mental health crisis. The truth is we don't know yet. But what we do know is that certain choices he made, like covering his license plate, suggest this was premeditated. And the brutality of the crime left little doubt in the minds of prosecutors.

The state of Arkansas has announced it will seek the death penalty. But amid the horror, there's also courage. Christian and Clinton Brinks two youngest daughters witnessed the unimaginable. Along with their older sister, Brianna, they are now navigating a future shaped by trauma. Few could ever comprehend. And yet, it was those two little girls who helped spark this entire investigation. According to Arkansas State Police, Colonel Mike Hager, the first critical pieces of information came from them. He said it all started with those two little girls.

Their bravery may be the reason their parents' killer was found, and their strength in the face of so much loss is something that will stay with this case forever. In a statement from the Brink and Osgood families, they said, Clinton and Kristen died heroes, protecting their little girls and they deserve justice. They will forever live on in all of our hearts. Heroes, it's the perfect word. Clinton fought to protect his family. Kristen got their daughters to safety and then turned back to help her husband. That kind of bravery is nothing short of extraordinary, and yet it's devastating because despite their courage,

their little girls were forced to witness something no child ever should. And now they have to grow up without their parents. all of it seemingly for no reason. We'll continue to follow this case and bring you any new developments as they unfold, because no matter what Andrew McGahn's reasoning turns out to be, if any at all, there is no justification, no explanation that could ever excuse what was taken from this innocent family. Clinton and Kristen Brink were parents, partners, protectors, and as their loved ones said, they deserve justice.

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