Cati Blauvelt: Death of a Soldier’s Wife | Full Episode | Forensic Files

[Music] Simpsonville is a Titanic Community it's got that small town southern charm this is a place where you bake a
cake and take it to your neighbor next door it was a great place to be a police officer and murderers and serious
assaults for a few and far between my name is Patty piver and Katy blel is my daughter Katie was 5'1 she was a teeny
little thing she was just a free spirit she made friends so easily she loved animals that was her biggest thing
she loved animals she touched a lot of people's lives she did John blel was working over there at
the arm for Forces Center he was a recruiter for the military he was someone that was
respected by the community somebody's in the military you can rely on them and I think she wanted
that somebody's stable and dependable John was a catch for Katie she married him was happy wanted to have
kids and get their life started they were moving into their new house so everything was really cool
what did John and Katie seem like as a couple to you at first they were really great
honestly they had a little honeymoon after they got married and once they got back things were no longer as good as
they were it seemed like ever since then just everything went downhill their marriage
had fallen apart Hannah Thompson and John were hanging out a lot he started dating Hannah Thompson
who I believe was 17 and was Hannah in love with him 100% she loved John and she wanted to be
with him and Katie was a problem for her and if they got Katie out of the way she
could have John to herself on October 24th of 2016 Katie Blauvelt went missing she disappeared she disappeared
off the face of the Earth yes and now nobody can get in touch with her her phone's cut off we don't know
what's going on shortly after midnight I got a phone call from our chief of police at the
time and uh he advised me that they'd found a body at an abandoned house very dilapidated house how had she
died she' been stabbed in the neck John did it I know John did it oh yeah I immediately thought John we did
our first interview with him several days after her body was located I'm just going to ask you point
blank did you kill ktie no do you know who killed her no shortly after that interview is when he flood the
state John disappears and he is on the Run John blel Goes On The Run where's Hannah with
him I contacted the United States Marshals this is their bread and butter what they do
best I'm a deputy US Marshal we go after uh fugitives violent off he's been trained on how to defend
himself he's been trained on how to kill does that make him a unique fugitive it
does so we don't know where he's going to go we don't know what he could be doing next and when you heard that he
was on the run what' you think I was like oh my God you're never going to find him
[Music] [Music] in the soft South Carolina night in the city of Simpsonville Katie Blauvelt was
missing it had been two fearful days for her mom Patty pyer I just was terrified
that something was going to happen to her then past midnight October 26 2016 investigators Cheryl scoffield and
Keith morecraft were dispatched to the scene Katie's mangled body had been found in an abandoned Farmhouse 22 years
old a knife blade left in her body there was a rectangular concrete box kind of in the center of the basement we found
Katie's body inside of that box her body had basically been folded into this box it was a picture of of
what you would see in a horror movie Katie's mom was overwhelmed I was totally empty
inside she did not deserve to be murdered Katie's stepsister Jennifer pyer I just prayed and cried
and just sick just sick morecraft and another investigator went to tell John Blauvelt his wife's
body had been found we went to make the death notific I'm so sorry for you lost there at first Blauvelt appeared
distressed but as the conversation progressed his demeanor changed didn't ask normal questions such as where did
you find her how did she died he wasn't shocked by the news he didn't seem to be
at all what did that suggest to you that he knew how she had died he knew where her body was John Blauvelt did have one
question but it wasn't about Katie am I being charge with a crime because he's recording me and I'm not comfortable
with that you're not being charge okay with a crime right now right away you sensed this could be our guy I I was
pretty confident at the time but they couldn't arrest him on a Feeling first morecraft and scoffield
had evidence to gather and a case to build but just as they got started John Blauvelt took to the road traveling with
him Hannah Thompson his new girlfriend all of 17 How concerned were you about Hannah's safety if he was willing to
kill his own wife there's no telling what kind of danger Hannah Thompson would have been in by fleeing with
him but John Blauvelt hadn't always been considered threatening back in 2014 in this quiet city of some 20,000 he was a
welcome part of the community the Larger than Life public face of the US Army a person of principal someone willing to
sacrifice for his country these are all admirable traits right exactly it was then that John met Katie just yards from
his Recruiting office at this sub shop where she worked Katie turned 20 John was 26 they started dating and they just
hid it off she's lovable caring funny they wouldn't fall in love with her in the summer of 2015 recruit John
Blauvelt convinced Katie to enlist but after just two months a health issue prevented her from finishing her
training they found a problem with her spine she got um a medical discharge out of the army while Katie's military hopes
were dashed John told friends he had found his calling he loved his military career that's one thing we learned is
that his career was everything to him with his War stories about his deployments in Iraq his sharp uniform
decorated with service ribbons John impressed local teenagers like to me like he had all his ducks in a row
almost like a role model right almost like a role model more like it was definitely like a role model Ally
Somerville a close friend of Katie says she often ate lunch with John at his recruiting booth in her school she adds
he also sometimes showed up at local Hangouts I thought he was cool he was very interested in your life what you
were up to in things yeah he made sure I was okay but as he began dating Katie her family was never half sure
about John Blauvelt I don't think I ever had a meaningful conversation with him did he seem interested in you in family
no not at all then after about a year and seemingly out of the blue Katie surprised her family with an alarming
announcement she says oh by the way she said uh me and John got married and I'm in shock she said oh we got
married at the courthouse they went on the honeymoon but within two months this that
honeymoon was over Staff Sergeant John Blauvelt and his new bride were putting down roots in
the community Katie had taken a job at the local PetSmart yeah she's going to love that and she did and she was
passionate about animals this could be a career for her as for John he already owned this four-bedroom home in Fountain
Inn right next to Simpsonville where investigator Cheryl scoffield worked once they got married this is the house
that they were supposed to move into and have a family she wanted a family she wanted to have kids Katie moved in and
soon the house was crowded with kids but not the kind Katie imagined unfortunately the only kids that were
here were the teenagers that John blav out invited John had invited Katie's niece to stay with them and later Hannah
Thompson and Ally Somerville crashed their to Ally says it became a party destination for kids from their High
School where John often worked as an army recruiter we were just smoking weed all
day every day and how old were you then 16 and Ally claimed it wasn't just weed that was the draw she said at times
there was booze acid and cocaine this is with the US Army recruiter right US army
recruit letting his party at his house like that's this is awesome Patty says it wasn't long before Katie grew
frustrated with all of the partying and told John it had to stop her dream house
turned into a party house right and that's the last thing your sister wanted right
absolutely as Katie and Blauvelt drifted Hannah Thompson was there to fuel the fire Hannah absolutely despised Katie
and what was the nature of Hannah's relationship with John as time went on Hannah became J's puppy um anytime that
JN would tell her to do something she would do it it was all too much for Katie according to police records after
being married Less Than 3 months Katie moved out Captain scoffield says John and Hannah wasted no time she moved into
John bevel's bedroom in this house when Katie moved out whoa that's creepy like you're in your late 20s and she's 17
dude like you're not supposed to be doing stuff like this Hannah's father went to the police and told them he
hadn't seen his daughter for 2 weeks that night on February 26th 2016 cops showed up at John blau's house when they
arrived what happens um they tried to make contact with John and JN refused to come
outside Ali Somerville was inside the house with John and some other miners when police arrived and John was like
locked the door nobody go outside what were they saying like the John blav like come out of the house with your hands up
but you must have been a little terrified were you not terrified these are people with weapons were weapons out
oh yeah there were weapons on and everything a veteran of the Iraq War and they're having to pull their guns to get
him out of the house yes it's kind of extraordinary isn't it yes very much so John eventually opened the door and was
questioned by police on February 27th 2016 he was arrested and charged with contributing to the delinquency of a
minor His solders image replaced with a mug shot he's the exact opposite of what everybody thought he
was exact opposite and soon Blah's troubles would get even worse police talked to Katie the day Blauvelt was
arrested she told them about a more troubling incident she says happened a month earlier there had been a domestic
violence incident where John allegedly pointed a gun at Katie pulls out a gun points it at her right head yeah says
what that he was going to kill her and also threaten the family threaten the family what do you mean to shoot
threaten the kill the family found in Police Department investigated the matter and ended up charging him with
domestic violence a restraining order was issued preventing blil and Katie from seeing
each other he blamed her for ruining his life because there was obviously going to be a consequence from the
military that consequence came just a few days later when the department of the army cut John's pay
and suspended him from the recruiting Duty that to find him you can't do this and be a military
recruiter the Army reassigned him to a small back office and began an investigation that might lead to his
dismissal he was like I can't be out in the field like on the front lines I'm not recruiting people for the
Army now I'm sitting behind a DE desk and that's what made him so mad Katie quickly moved on from her short
disastrous marriage and told her mother she planned to divorce John your daughter moves out does she move back
with you yeah but despite the restraining order Katie and JN still had some contact including visits to the
house she had shared with John the only reason she would go back over there was because she had her dog over there
Jupiter for some reason I just was terrified that something was going to happen to her as for Blauvelt the
military career he cherished was in tatters and according to Ali Somerville he planned to get revenge did he ever
say anything about harming Katie yes um he did say multiple times that he was going to kill Katie he said that she
ruined his military career that's all he's ever wanted to do in life you destroy my career I'm going to
destroy you yeah do you think he'd really go through with it no never he was very vocal on the fact that
he wanted Katie dead he wanted Katy gone police say Katie Blauvelt was last seen alive on October 24th
2016 at her job at p smart but come morning in Simpsonville no one had heard from her
calls to her went to voicemail her mother reported her missing did she tell the officer she
spoke with that she was suspicious of John blauel she did the desperate search and the painful
waiting began I didn't think she was alive anymore it's terrifying it's the worst feeling you feel
helpless but after midnight two of Katie's friends followed a hunch that sent them deep in the woods to the old
abandoned Farmhouse teenagers would go there and they would party they would drink they
would smoke marijuana Katie and John were known to have gone there too the friends made their way to the
basement they were horrified by what they found one of them called 911 911 what's location of your
emergency we found my friend Katie's dead in okay okay are you saying she's dead in the house yes ma'am is she cold
she was very p and there was no response Katie bl's body had been stuffed into that cold concrete box you believe she
Katie was killed outside the house and brought in yes and we believe that she was actually killed on the gravel
driveway and then drug on her face through that window and if she's screaming there's no one to hear you
wouldn't hear it from that house where that house was located and you live with that every day
every day doesn't get easier does it no it was October 26 2016 investigators made that official
death notification visit to Blauvelt they got their first sense of the resentment he held towards Katie she
flipped my life upside down morecraft and sculfield wanted more information from Blauvelt and so just a week later
they spoke with him anything you say can be used against you in court didn't seem
to really care that she was gone let alone had been murdered I lost a friend maybe not the best wife but I
lost friend he told them he visited Katie at the funeral home you yourself yeah well
I took hand with me lelt said he hadn't seen Katie in months their marriage had been a nonstop
argument what kind of stuff are you arguing about um everything just normal just normal stuff he uh he seemed very
arrogant cocky narcissistic then the Cop fired Point Blank that question did you kill ktie no do
you know who killed her no sitting across talking to this man what are you sensing in John blauel that he very much
is the one who more than likely committed this murder like he was put off like we were taking up his time that
he was smarter than we were and that he was going to get away with this next up Hanna Thompson I don't know anything
about her murder you do I don't you do investigators confront Hannah sensing she must know something tell us exactly
what happened to Katie I really don't know and while they suspected Hannah might know
something they did not know exactly what I can tell you already you're lying to me
okay you do not want to get wrapped up and catching a murder charge you're 17 years old you have your entire life
ahead of you mhm you may love John and you may think you you're going to get married and walk down the yellow brick
road okay but no man and no woman is worth going to prison for do you agree yes sir okay if you
know something and you're trying to cover up for it you're going to go down with the person who did this to her for
for knowing anything whether it was beforehand or after the fact you're going to go down with them investigators
showed Hannah an autopsy photo of Katie look at Hann she's right here I don't want to look at her this your
friend I don't want to do this anymore don't want to do what don't want to help us find out who killed
her can I please leave can I please leave Hannah this is a friend of yours that we trying to do I want to help
I with no help from Hannah police hands were tied we had to let him go potential
hard evidence had to be processed including blav cell phone records and his DNA it's very aggravating because we
we know we're sitting across from the person who killed his wife and shortly after that interview is when he fled the
state he had taken this red GMC Yukon and he was gone he was John Blauvelt trained in survival
and combat suddenly loose on the open road I didn't think they were ever going to
find him he just disappeared off the face of the map and so did Hannah Thompson police
believed she was with Blauvelt prosecutor Kinley ABY would begin building the case with the
chilling evidence she says he left behind first what I want to kind of show you is you know the knife that was found
in Katie's neck and so what you can see here is this x-ray that the actual kn knife blade broke off inside of Katie
what you're holding there is what I'm seeing on this exactly matches exactly right there that's what was found en
lodged in her neck and that's how she died Simpsonville Police knew they needed help to find John Blauvelt I
contacted the United States Marshals the investigation is let's find them let's find them let's find them
on November 18th 2016 John Blauvelt still on the Run was charged with Katie's [Music]
murder what kind of fugitive are you dealing with um a cocky one John thought we weren't ever going to find
him US Marshall will cook based near Simpsonville would become the point person in the hunt for
Blauvelt who had been skilled at evasion he had training from the army that the government provided him to
avoid you guys avoid us and he was good at it investigators remained uncertain about Hannah Thompson's involvement in
the murder if any but they knew for sure she was traveling with Blauvelt they uncovered photos of
Blauvelt and Thompson shopping and Blauvelt at an ATM his red Yukon truck passing through
Texas and New Mexico heading west were you able to get hits on where this vehicle was from
time to time so there were a couple of License Plate Reader hits but by the time police were able to respond
Blauvelt was gone in a game like this all the seconds count then after a month investigators caught a break Hannah
Thompson made contact with her family from Eugene Oregon she wanted to come home to
Simpsonville Cheryl scoffield could wait to talk to her we are very glad that you're back and that you're safe and
that's nothing bad happened to you Hannah's story was that John had left her in Eugene just up and walked
[Music] away did you ever see John again and Hannah added she had no idea where John was headed but apparently she
had enough of life on the run she thought it was going to be a fairy tale tail you know they were going to live on
the lamb and make things happen but after a few weeks of that reality set in any romantic notion Hannah may have
had was derailed when JN got the Yukon stuck in the mud in the Pacific Northwest couldn't get out could not get
out he said that we would hike we had to hike and walk off the mountain basically
Miles and Miles the C was reduced to pen handling for Change and they use that for food
sustainment Hannah says while on the road Blauvelt confessed sharing the awful details of the
killing told me that the knife broke you can't believe that he would do something right
there what what else did he tell you about it I know hard he told me that the last thing she she said was that if he
let her go then she wouldn't call the police where were they home an adult can psychologically take
advantage of a child do you believe in a way that's what was going on between John and Hannah absolutely yeah and he
was just crying and screaming and like he was like saying that he did all that stuff for me like the I what like kill
Katie like he was like I did that for you and like all that kind of stuff like trying to make me feel like it was my
fault Hannah told conflicting stories about her involvement eventually saying she dropped blav off by PetSmart the day
Katie disappeared and then left Hannah says she did not know he planned to kill Katie but later that day he asked her to
help hide Katie's car she also admitted she had lied in her first interview just
days after Katie's murder he told me that if I lied to the police that he would keep me safe
investigators did not charge Hannah right away because they needed her we had a long-term goal of a finding John B
Prosecuting him and she was the key to a lot of that we're still hunting for John
okay they hoped she might lead them to Blauvelt has John contacted you by Facebook at all since you separated or
contacted you by any means at all please don't keep a secret from from us okay okay but if Hannah knew where John was
she wasn't ready to tell them I still don't care about him even though he did something like
really bad like I feel like I should am and part of me done but what he just keep thinking about how
he used to be lelt was still out there months turned into years lives changed he's beating us and we don't
like to lose it's driving you crazy it's driving us crazy was it frustrating that
you retired with this case still out there it was very frustrating and it was the only case that I still had that was
open those who knew Blauvelt thought Justice for Katie might never come John is the type of person that if somebody
was going to get away with it it would be John I never really thought that they would get
him the cops in Simpsonville interviewed Hannah repeatedly over the years then in
2022 6 years after Katie's murder Hannah Finally Revealed a secret she had been in regular contact
with Blauvelt for years years we have been talking the whole time like At first we were talking every single day
multiple time like for hours a day did anybody know you were still talking to them Hannah told investigators how they
communicated at the very beginning we were communicating on Facebook and messenger and then after that we were
talking on Snapchat she said their conversations ended in 2019 author authorities believe Hannah
had matured with time and distance away from John she told them she realized what she had done was wrong and
gradually offered more leads John might still be in Oregon and she added Jon told her he had been living with another
woman for years CU honestly she's in danger too based on some of the information that Hannah gave us zoned Us
in on John's new girlfriend and madford Oregon Medford a small City in the Northwest
investigators jumped on the lead and discovered a phone number that John had used to text a mystery woman and this
sounds tantalizing isn't it very tantalizing Marshall Chris Tayo is Will Cook's colleague in the Northwest his
team got an address that corresponded with the mystery woman's house he took us to the scene they started to stake
out the house take out the house and they followed a subject out a male that appeared to match our
description but 6 years after John allegedly murdered Katie how could investigators be certain they had their
man John has some unique tattoos can you show me so this is a still shot uh from
one of John's initial interviews with Simpsonville Police the tattoo of of a pirate it was a quiet morning in
Medford as I'm starting to pull through this neighborhood my heart is racing the marshals made their
move that's the house right there and did you see any activity we uh did see him come out he was just coming out
shirtless but was it for sure John Blauvelt a pirate told the tale I could see his pirate tattoo all right it's
about to happen it [Music] [Music] is on July 20th 2022 some 6 years after Katie's
death Chris too joined Marshall's and other law enforcement for the takeown of the man they believed killed
her John's about 3/4 away down the driveway and the guys start going right at him giving them commands police show
us your hands get down on the ground and what does he do his eyes got wide pure shock and he drops down to the ground
fast John Blauvelt under arrest he's getting handcuffed handcuffs but the suspect told the marshals they
had the wrong man he said I'm Ben Klein said no you're not and he stuck with Ben
Klein Ben kleene we have a device that allows us to Mobile Print someone in the field fingerprint fingerprints it took
less than 5 minutes for Ben to become John your fingerprints show that you are John blel you were wanted out of South
Carolina he knew it was over he knew it was over when the marshals went inside the house
they realized the raid could have taken a fatal turn there was a firearm a handgun sitting right on the nightstand
and what did that tell you that was an indication to us that he probably would have given a fight all of it was
apparently news to the woman Blauvelt was living with when she returned to the house later that day pure shock she was
visibly shaking crying scared too recorded audio with her at the scene so he's being arrested um on charges out of
South Carolina for for murder are you serious yeah I can't believe any of this this is like a nightmare I'm
sorry blav bel's girlfriend told the marshals she had no idea who he really was for like six years he would do
random odd jobs he was basically here watching my cats and my my dog all the time she loved him she loved
him the news hit Simpsonville like thunder I was over the moon just freaking it's just that was such a great
day and I was completely elated John Blauvelt would go cross country again this time handcuffed brought back to a
South Carolina jail to await trial just 3 months later Hannah Thompson would be charged with five
felonies including obstruction of justice and accessory after the fact she would plead not guilty and be released
on bail prosecutor Kinley AB who began putting the case against Blauvelt together a few months after Katie was
killed would team with John Mets preparing the case for trial starting with that blade investigators found in
case neck doesn't get any worse than that and that's what she died from and you can actually see through
the collar of the shirt where that knife blade entered and you can see it right there yeah right into her neck they
focused on that abandoned Farmhouse where kids once partied where they found Katie they would throw their bottles
their empty beer cans and that's exactly where he discarded Katie's body so do you think John was making a statement by
placing her body absolutely in this bin that normally you put trash yeah absolutely prosecutors say Blauvelt
blamed Katie for the abrupt end of his military career it's all Katie Sal he's not responsible for what he did he's
blaming his wife yes and there were John blau's own words while on the Run he kept a journal that the marshals found
like a diary correct correct and it held a damning entry so at the end it says bold
I did it and for you that's what uh that's evidence and proof that he murdered Katie in September
2024 8 years after Katie's death John Blauvelt went on trial for murder Patty pyer described the child she adored she
some I mean everybody loved her Ali Somerville stared at the man she once called a role model he looked like a
stonecold killer to me the prosecution's key witness was Hannah Thompson she would admit to helping Blauvelt the day
Katie died you love John blav yes you helped him hi ktie St after he Ked yes you didn't know he killed her that no
but she did help him yes and prosecutors played this grainy video Hannah says it
shows John Blauvelt getting out of Katie's car and into his Hannah was at the wheel of his
Prius yes in the and the Prius yes once on the run she says he told her the details of the murder he had told me
that he killed her he told me that he stabbed her in the neck he said said that he
threw her phone into water that was on the ground in the abandoned house and he said that he had to cover up the her
blood with dirt but Blah's defense team Paul Neely and Anna Walker made Hannah admit that her story changed over the
years you've lied your friends and your family yes and he kept lying yes then the defense zeroed in on
the lack of DNA evidence at the scene was there any DNA that tied John blofeld to this murder no there is no DNA match
to John Blauvelt and what about John Blah's journal in which he wrote I did it his
lawyers told 48 Hours much of it was a fantasy a lot of of this journal is filled with these fictional stories of
observations uh it's filled with poems drawings all kinds of things as for Hannah Thompson you heard she has five
pending charges for the information she ultimately provided to law enforcement the prosecution pointed to the
importance of her testimony she is facing 55 years in jail upon conviction for those crimes and she got up here
with no deal State didn't offer her a single thing no agreement to dismiss her charges no cooperation agreement no
nudge nudge wink wink none of it she got up here and testified and she told you because she thought it was the right
thing to do she did a great job going up there and telling the truth and giving the key details of what John had told
her what he had done to Katie the trial lasted 4 days the jury was out for some five hours as to the charge of
murder we the jury unanimously find the defendant John T blel guilty John blel has been found guilty for the murder of
his estranged wife Katie Boer blav Taylor farmer covered the case for WSPA it was very emotional in the
courtroom kind of quiet but you could tell Katie's family was very emotional as soon as the jurors got out
I just started crying John Blauvelt was sentenced to life in prison without parole he's a
monster she was helpless and what did the family think about Hannah Thompson who allegedly
covered for blil for so long I would think she was a stupid 17-year-old until at trial when I heard
how long she had been in touch with him you are not with willing at that time to
turn him in I have hard feelings about that it's unfathomable what would you say to your
sister today if you could that I'm sorry that I love her and that I think she was Brave
[Music] CBS next Saturday a wife terrified of her estranged husband I don't want him
anywhere near me is found shot to death lady down lady down the hunt was on you leave no Rock unturned but could her
murder have been prevented I knew this it was going to happen 48 hours is all new CBS next Saturday 109 Central and
streaming on Paramount Plus

A soldier goes on the run after his wife is murdered. With him, his 17-year-old girlfriend. What does she know? "48 Hours" correspondent Peter Van Sant reports. Watch more full episodes of "48 Hours" on Pluto TV.

Go deeper into the case with our new "Post Mortem" video podcast: https://youtu.be/ANLAvjCvw0U

True crime. Real justice. "48 Hours" investigates the most intriguing crime and justice cases that touch on all areas of the human experience including greed and passion. "48 Hours," which premiered in 1988, has developed a rich history of original reporting and impact journalism that has helped exonerate wrongly convicted people, caused cold cases to be reopened and solved, and along the way changed lives.

For video licensing inquiries, contact: licensing@veritone.com

Brief Summary

Katie Blauvelt was murdered by her husband John, who fled but was later arrested and convicted after his girlfriend testified against him.

Key points

The Disappearance of Katie Blauvelt. Katie Blauvelt went missing on October 24, 2016, leading to a desperate search.
A Gruesome Discovery. Katie's body was found in a concrete box, raising alarms about her murder.
John Blauvelt Goes on the Run. After being questioned about Katie's murder, John disappears, evading authorities.
Hannah's Confession. Hannah reveals her ongoing communication with Blauvelt, raising questions about her involvement.
Blauvelt's Arrest. After years on the run, John Blauvelt is arrested, claiming he's not the man they want.
Trial Verdict. John Blauvelt is found guilty of murdering Katie Boer, leading to a life sentence.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

It was a picture of what you would see in a horror movie.

Describing the scene where Katie's body was found.

5:31WatchMar 13, 2025

Tension

85/ 100High tension

More from 48 Hours

Solve the Crime

Read a real case one clue at a time, then see how your call held up against the investigators.