The boyfriend of a woman whose body was found in a refrigerator in New Jersey’s Belleplain State Forest has been charged in her murder, authorities said Wednesday.
Runnemede resident Christopher Blevins, 45, was charged with first-degree murder in the death of Laura Hughes, 50, whose body was discovered in the forest in Dennis Township on Dec. 22.
Blevins had already been charged in early January with second-degree desecration of human remains and third-degree hindering apprehension. The murder charge was levied last Wednesday, prosecutors said.
Police had sought the public’s help in identifying Hughes, whose body bore a unique set of tattoos. A yoga mat and necklace were also retrieved from the scene.
Blevins had fled to Mexico after allegedly dumping the fridge containing Hughes’ body in the forest last July. He surrendered to authorities in Mexico City in January and turned himself over to police in California, where he remains pending extradition, the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office said.
At the time, he told investigators he’d been involved in a “violent incident” and feared he “may have killed someone in a bar fight,” WCAU reported.
Police suspected Blevins after a review of video footage from New Jersey cameras showed something that resembled a refrigerator in the back of his green Dodge Ram just before he fled.
In addition, police found blue ratchet straps that had been used on the outside of the fridge in the home the two shared, according to an affidavit obtained by NJ.com. A firearm, plus a calendar marked with “Xs” leading up to July 24, 2024, when he allegedly deposited of her body, reportedly sealed the deal.
Authorities praised the collaboration between the New Jersey State Police Major Crime Unit-South, the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office homicide unit and the Cape May County Prosecutor’s Office major crimes unit in solving the homicide of Hughes, a mother of two.
Another man arrested in December for obstruction in connection with Hughes’ death was uninvolved in the case itself, police have determined.