When Elizabeth “Betsy” Faria died in the town of Troy in the state of Missouri in 2011, everyone assumed it was the result of a domestic dispute involving her husband, Russell “Russ” Faria. However, as the documentary “The Thing About Pam” documents, this was not the case at all – the majority of the solid, incriminating evidence still points to Pamela “Pam” Hupp, who was the last person to see her alive. We should delve into her possible motive and determine what led to her eventual arrest now that she has been charged with homicide, which happened in July 2021, about a decade after the crime occurred.
Pam Hupp: Why Did She Murder Betsy Faria?
Due to the fact that Betsy Faria had two life insurance policies in her name while battling illness, and Pam Hupp was listed as the only beneficiary of one of them just days before her death, money appears to be the most obvious reason for the murder. Having said that, the mother of two has always maintained that, despite being on disability, she was never in financial problems or had any obligations because her husband earned a consistent salary. Strangely enough, she initially claimed the $150,000 was intended for Betsy and her two girls, but later claimed her friend had asked her to retain the money for herself.
To make matters worse, according to court records, Pam claimed “her best buddy” thought she was wealthy, which is why she never asked for, sought, or required any monetary assistance from anyone. However, despite the fact that her husband testified regarding their money as well as their properties, which was especially important given their house flipping side business, the NBC version hinted that the Hupps were in trouble. According to the limited crime-drama series, they were late on their mortgage payments at the time of Betsy’s brutal death, which could imply a desperate need for money, which could lead to desperate measures.
Pam was known to be a money-hungry woman, but throughout the years, various other motives have been claimed, including a desire for power and control, difficulties from an alleged brain injury, or simply a need for attention. According to editor and writer Jeannette Cooperman in early 2020, “the broad consensus — shared by cops, neighbours, family, and true-crime aficionados — was that Pam Hupp was nasty.” In other words, although if it is legally impossible to determine whether Pam stabbed Betsy to death or not, let alone whether she was motivated to do so, many people believe she may have easily been culpable.
Pam Hupp: How Did She Get Caught?
Pam Hupp was arrested and charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action on August 23, 2016, following the shooting death of Louis Gumpenberger inside her house a week earlier. She had claimed that he was a dangerous house invader who she had shot in self-defense, but her story was not taken seriously, in part because he had mental and physical limitations, which made it difficult to trust her. The result was that in the summer of 2019, she submitted an Alford guilty plea, after which she was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of release, prompting the re-examination of her involvement in other criminal situations.
That was the point at which the authorities were finally able to piece together all of the evidence that had been slowly accumulating against Pam over the preceding years. Among these were the fact that she changed her story several times during her interrogation for Betsy’s murder, that she lied about what she meant to do with the life insurance payout, and that she most likely fabricated documents and occurrences in order to implicate Russ Faria. More to the point, on that fateful December 2011 day, she had interjected herself into Betsy’s life by insisting that she drive her home after chemotherapy, regardless of whether she had a ride or not.
And as if that weren’t enough, phone records reveal that Pam remained in the region of Betsy’s home for approximately 30 minutes after insisting she’d dropped her off, implying that her 7:20 p.m. “home” text to “her closest friend” was sent from a location in the vicinity of the latter’s home. When all of this was paired with the official documents demonstrating that Betsy was murdered by someone she trusted and Russ had a solid alibi, Pam was the only one who could be considered a potential suspect. Consequently, on July 12, 2021, she was charged with first-degree murder, a charge for which she has not yet been convicted.