Rancho Mirage man claims husband’s drug overdose death was murder, seeks answers
A man from Rancho Mirage is demanding answers after his husband unexpectedly died earlier this year. What was initially ruled as a drug overdose by the police has now raised suspicions and led the grieving husband to believe there is more to the story.
Darrin Tharp, a 61-year-old resident of Rancho Mirage, passed away in his home on April 16. At the time, his husband, Dan Mulcahey, was visiting family out of town. Mulcahey received the devastating news from the coroner, who informed him of Tharp's apparent overdose.
In an interview with News Channel 3, Mulcahey expressed his disbelief at police's initial assessment, saying it is "unbelievable, because we don't do drugs here. And it was a drug death. And I'm like, that's not right. I knew that right out the gate."
When he returned home, Mulcahey discovered white powdered, dried substances, sex toys, and even blood on the floor. However, seeking the police and coroner's reports, he faced difficulty obtaining information from the Riverside County Sheriff's Department.
"I don't understand why I can't have a police report," he said. "I still have no idea who found him, what time, who called the police, who called the ambulance, who was here, and that's all I wanted to know."
Mulcahey's suspicions grew when he learned about an alleged serial rapist, Hakan Isik, who is accused in at least five assaults over the last year. One of Isik's alleged victims, Rand Snell, said he met Isik on a dating app before being drugged with meth and assaulted in a hotel room. Isik, whose charging documents also show an alias as Isaac Hakan, has not been charged in Tharp's death.
Mulcahey decided to check his community's guard gate logs from the days surrounding his husband's death. He discovered a man named "Isaac" had visited their home around 11:30 the night prior. "So the pieces are already coming together... it all smelled like [Isik] was involved," he said. In his mind, he firmly believes that his husband was murdered.
Mulcahey expressed frustration with the timeline of the investigation, as the first report about Isik was made to the Palm Springs Police Department in January, but he was not arrested until May. "That's all good and fine to build a case, but in the meantime, two guys were assaulted, and Darrin was murdered. So that's my frustration," Mulcahey said.
Heartbroken and seeking justice, Mulcahey believes his husband should still be alive. Through tears, he said, "I miss you... it ruined my life too."
When pressed for comment, the Sheriff's Department has not yet responded regarding the investigation into Tharp's death.
