Intense Manhunts | “48 Hours" Full Episodes | Forensic Files

[Music] I'm no different than any other teenager in America. I love my family and my friends,
my two dogs and my cat. I love writing. I love reading. Despite me trying to be a normal teenager,
someone does want me dead. [Music] This is the picture of me, a description of me, where I lived, where I worked,
that Mastermind 365 posted about me >> on the Murder for Hire website. >> Yes. >> Hi, my name is Ura. We have hundreds of
gang members, criminals, and people who love to kill for money. [Music] They are anonymous. You are anonymous.
So come and get rid of those nasty problems. >> This is deadly serious. This is talking
about the murder of a human being. >> It definitely changed my life. I kept looking over my shoulder. I didn't know
who I could trust. I could be killed on my way to work. I could be killed on my way home from school. And that terrified
me. >> You can submit your orders to kill the people you hate. >> We've got some significant leads on who
Euro might be. >> Do you think you're getting close? >> Yeah, absolutely. [Music]
As a dark web intelligence analyst, >> my job is to uncover that which is hidden.
>> Is there a chance as I look up on your screen that may be our guy? >> Everyone can be found. You're a can be
found. So, we are literally a car ride from where we're talking right now to where
you believe Ura actually lives. >> Yes. We're going to make a left at the next street.
Go slower. Go slower. Go slower. >> Where's the house? >> It's this one right here. Yeah, it's
this house right here where Yora might presently live. >> Man, my heart is racing.
>> Let's see. I'm alive. Go. >> Are you Europe? >> Stop recording right now. [Music]
[Music] late. On a frigid night in February 2019, 18-year-old Alexis Stern was driving near her hometown of Big Lake,
Minnesota, when she says she noticed a white van in her rear view mirror. >> So, we started driving around town,
taking detours, >> but the van stuck with her. In a growing panic, she called authorities, who later
located and spoke with the van's driver. He claimed he was lost. He didn't know where he was.
>> You have no doubt you were being followed, right? >> Yeah. >> Alexis had every reason to be worried
because of something that had happened just months earlier when out of nowhere the police had called her.
>> We have to talk to you. It's dire and you need to come now. >> It's dire, he said.
>> Yes. He said it was urgent. I had no idea what to expect. Did someone die? Is someone hurt? Like, am I
in trouble? >> When Alexis arrived at the police station, she got stunning news.
>> He was just like, I think you should sit down. Someone put a hit out on you and
they want you dead. I was like, this is a joke, right? >> It was not a joke. On the dark web,
someone using the alias mastermind 365 had gone to a hitman for hire sight and paid about $5,000 worth of Bitcoin for
Alexis to be assassinated, giving chilling details. >> Where I lived, where I worked, a picture
of me, a description of me, everything. >> FBI and Homeland Security agents soon
got involved. Although many dark web sites are scams, Alexis knew someone out there wanted her dead.
>> And that terrified me. >> Authorities promised to investigate. The aspiring horror book author had read
about the dark web, a hidden online marketplace where criminality ranging from human trafficking to illegal
weapons is advertised for sale, even murder. The more you start to dig, the darker it
starts to get. >> It was in 2017 that 48 hours first investigated dark web murder for hire.
The next year, we exposed about 20 active murder plots. Police received a tip from the CBS news program 48 hours.
48 hours alerted law enforcement, leading to arrests in two states and two foreign countries. Our
investigation also led us to this mysterious figure known as Ura, who has been operating Hitman's sites for about
5 years. We don't know his real name or location, but he sent us these video diaries.
>> I am doing this video diary entry to give you official statements. Looking for criminals on the dark web
is not for the faint of heart. >> For most of her career, this woman has lived in the shadows.
>> I was a member of the intelligence community. >> Now, she's a CBS News consultant who we
hired to help us look for Ura. What makes it challenging is this isn't your traditional law enforcement
investigation where there's DNA and there's fingerprints and a weapon and a a crime scene.
>> Lisa, as we'll call her, has altered her appearance for this interview. >> In the world of the dark web, DNA is
email addresses, usernames, passwords. >> Lisa analyzed Ura's writings. His English is very good.
>> But she says the evidence suggests he is foreignb born and doesn't work alone.
>> There's definitely some support. >> She says the murder for hire sites are all about making big money and that she
found millions of dollars of profits in an online account she believes is linked
to Eura. >> Upwards of I think 5 million. Apparently about $5,000 of those profits was
allegedly paid to kill Alexis Stern. When her parents found out they weren't taking any chances,
>> you left Minnesota. >> Yes. We just started driving. >> It was scary. >> But who would want her dead? Alexis
thought she knew. Back in 2016, she was a high school sophomore struggling with her
self-esteem. She was just 15 when a friend introduced her to an older man online.
>> I ended up meeting a guy named Adrien. >> Adrien Fry. >> Yes, Adrien Fry. >> She was intrigued to learn that Adrien
Fry lived in England. >> I was always partial to British accents, so I thought it was kind of a bonus.
>> Adrien was 20. He said he was training to be an accountant and liked to stream
video games online. His screen name Rocket Wind. >> What is up ladies and gentlemen? My name
is Rocket Wind and welcome to another uh patch notes. >> I wanted to have a boyfriend and it was
the perfect opportunity. >> In August of 2016, Fry flew to Minnesota and got a hotel room near her house.
>> This is Adrien right here. Yes. >> Do your parents have any idea this is going on?
>> No, they had no idea. >> The two began a relationship. Alexis had just turned 16.
>> He was already pretty much talking about getting married. Honestly, he he was
100% set on being with me. >> Adrien Fry visited Alexis twice more in the summer of 2017 and in the spring of
2018. She says her feelings were changing. >> He really started trying to control my
normal everyday life. >> They had considered themselves a couple for about 2 years when Alexis told
Adrien it was over. >> He freaked out. He did not like that at all. It was a lot of pleading, a lot of
begging. >> A few months later, when she told him she had a new boyfriend, she says he
became angry. pretty much saying you deserve everything horrible that happens to you.
>> Do you sense that he's basically sending you a message >> 100%. >> And what is that message
>> that it's not going to end that great for me? [Music] Someone could sneak into the house and
kill me. I could be killed on my way home from school. >> We asked Alexis Stern to read the
disturbing emails between the person who wanted her dead, cenamed mastermind 365,
and Ura, the alleged murder for hire kingpin on the dark web. [Music] >> I can see on your website that the
services you offer are murder, assault, arson. A kidnapping is the job that I had in mind.
>> Mastermind 365 sent this picture of Alexis to Ura. Then for some reason about a week later, he
upgraded his order from kidnapping to I would just like this person dead. >> I would just like this person to be shot
and killed. [Music] It was another cold and clinical Minnesota hit order that triggered our
original dark web murder for hire investigation. In 2016, a 43-year-old dog trainer named
Amy Allwine was killed in nearby Cottage Grove. Police questioned her husband, Steven.
>> We're a normal family. There's nothing nothing unique, nothing strange. [Music]
Like mastermind 365, Steven Alwine had paid Ura thousands of dollars to arrange a hit.
When it didn't happen, Alwine took matters into his own hands and shot his wife in the head.
In 2018, he was convicted of murder. >> Do you have any doubt in your mind who put out the contract on your life? I
have no doubt in my mind that it is Adrien Fry. >> Adrien Fry, her ex-boyfriend from
England. When she saw the kill order dated July 15th, she says the timing suddenly made sense to her.
>> What had happened the day before, July 14th? >> That is when I told Adrian that I was
dating someone else. >> And it wasn't just the timing of the hit order. She says it was the language,
too. >> It sounds very British. I would just like this person dead, but if there's
any more information you would like, inbox me. I don't know anyone in America that uses the term inbox me. Adrien, on
the other hand, often would say that. >> Alexis noticed mastermind 365 sometimes
referred to himself with a lowercase I. She says when Adrien wrote her, he did the same thing. She also saw that
mastermind 365 wrote thank you as one word. In Adrienne's messages to her, he'd done that, too. It's a quirk that
would become more significant later in our investigation. And there was more. >> Mastermind 365 Turo. My problem is that
I don't currently have an extra 5 grand, but I will have it in about a week's time. This part is from Adrien to me. If
there is a chance you may like me in years time, then I will happily wait. >> The phrases weeks time and years time
are common in British English. In writing them, both Mastermind 365 and Adrien Fry had left off an apostrophe.
So, there's a couple of phrases that matches Adrienne's patterns. >> Yes. She also realized mastermind 365 seemed
to have grown impatient with Ura over time. And that's when she saw one particular message that sent a shiver up
her spine. >> Do you guys sell guns? I need a pistol with a silencer. [Music] >> He's asked you to help him get a gun
with a silencer. >> Mhm. >> What does that tell you? It sounds like he is willing to take matters into his
own hands if it doesn't get done. >> Just like Steven Allwine. And that's what worries our dark web
expert Lisa. She believes Ura's websites are a scam and that frustrated clients may be moved to violence.
The fact that he's a scammer as opposed to an actual hitman for hire provider um
does not remove the fact that he is a threat or is a criminal. >> There are people out there who believe
it is a real hitman website. Alexis Stern says after more than a year with little apparent progress on her
case, she became frustrated and agreed to try her luck with us. >> I decided I might as well take a chance
and see what 48 hours can help me with. >> Give me a second. >> She is determined to see justice catch
up to the man she says ordered her murder and the person who promised to arrange it.
Lisa, we have always thought in our investigation that you're a mustave overseas. Are we right?
>> No, Peter. You're a might live right here in New York City. The Hitman marketplace is like any other
auction site. It brings customers and vendors together. >> He's still out there somewhere. The
Cyber Ghost Eura. Still uncatchable in a hidden world. Still a confounding mystery. off
customers. >> It's probably no surprise that our global manhunt for Europe began on a
computer. So, I ventured into a very strange place for the first time in my life, the dark web.
>> In 2018, we wrote to him on his website asking for an interview. Much to our surprise, he agreed to sit down with us
on camera in London. We were already there to interview a self-styled cyber crime researcher named
Chris Monttero who'd been monitoring Eura and his hitman sites for more than 3 years and sort of people attracted
website are very very nasty individuals. So, we've flown from New York to London,
rented this studio. You can see the lights behind me for the big interview, and we even brought in a master of
disguise who's going to camouflage Ura's face. Now, all we need is him. The elusive Ura never showed up,
claiming we could have been followed by police, but he did start sending us those video statements. We will be
waiting for you to come place your orders and get rid of your problems. >> Ura, who seems to enjoy taunting 48
hours, sent us this email in June 2019. Unfortunately, after your show, the business has decreased tremendously.
People concluded that the site is a scam. Ura even claimed he's going legit, moving away from the murder for higher
sites into the real world. I opened a restaurant business and I live nice. Lisa, our dark web expert, doubts Ura
has left his criminal past behind. >> He's still very much in business. >> He's still working.
>> Absolutely. And as the cases of Amy Allwine and Alexis Stern show, even if Ura's hitman sites are scams,
the customers paying him to have people killed are horrifyingly real. >> A lot of people want other people
killed. >> Correct. >> All across the United States >> and the world. Yes. >> Lisa is determined to unmask Eura.
>> Everyone can be found. Eura can be found. >> And she quickly spotted her first clue.
A massive trail of hacked digital data. Digging through that treasure trove, Lisa believes she's unearthed a few gold
nuggets. >> Hi, this is her again. >> Including Ura's likely password from one of his early Murder for Higher sites. In
this case, we've got this very unique password of Frenza 22. >> F R U N Z A 22. So, this sounds like a
lead. >> From a digital forensics perspective, this is a huge lead. >> Lisa immediately launched a worldwide
search across the dark web and the regular internet for that password possibly linked to Europe.
In a matter of hours, she zeroed in on two hits from different sides of the planet.
>> Just on the Google search, friends at 22 actually led us to Moldova of all places.
>> The Republic of Muldova, a former Soviet state in Eastern Europe. There's a village here called Franza. It's also a
common last name. Frenza 22 gave us all this intelligence with which to work with and narrow down who Euro possibly
could be. >> Lisa discovered that the online seller of this car in Muldova had also used
Franza 22. >> Could there be a link? >> The license plate for this car obviously
gives us more information. >> Do you have an answer yet as to who owns this vehicle?
>> Unfortunately, we do not. We're coordinating with people on the ground in Muldova to see who this car is
actually registered to. >> But the most compelling clue, Lisa says, connects Yura's possible password to a
standard email address here in the United States. >> I was able to identify that with a very
high probability with an older Russian woman in New York. Lisa thinks the woman could be Ura's
relative. The cyber search for Ura and his anonymous dark web connections will involve a tedious, time-consuming
process of following digital breadcrumbs. >> One piece of evidence stands on its own
and you look at it as a breadcrumb and you try to chase that for a bit and then you find another breadcrumb.
And collectively, when you start to add all of these things up, you have a higher confidence assessment.
>> I keep my identity private. Everything that could help with recognition. >> As our global hunt for Eura intensifies,
we're reminded that his borderless reach from the bottom of the internet has left
shattered lives in his wake. Amy Allwine murder and others marked for death living in perpetual fear. There are
people around the world in danger and I had to do something about it. What Chris
Montero did was secretly hack into URA's websites, dredging up disturbing emails
from clients, ordering grizzly hits, and passing them on to 48 hours. We immediately informed law enforcement.
Three cases we investigated in 2018 in Illinois, Tennessee, and California have led to explosive conclusions. Do you
understand the terror that you have caused? >> Woodridge, Illinois. Tina Jones, a
registered nurse, got involved with a married colleague. When he ended the affair, she allegedly paid Ura about
$12,000 to kill the man's wife. >> 18C Jones and approaching the bench. This was a
nurse, someone who saves lives. >> Truth really is stranger than fiction. >> So,
>> Woodridge Police Sergeant Daniel Murray acting on the 48 hours tip brought a chillingly calm Tina Jones
>> in for questioning. >> The easier it'll go for everybody involved. So, I'm just going to ask you
right now, >> did you make any threat or did you try to have somebody do something on your
behalf to Jeff's wife? >> No. >> Okay. You sure about that? >> Yeah. Pause. >> You buying it?
>> No. >> Why not? >> She just doesn't come off as believable. >> I I really don't know.
>> Okay. >> Moments later, the truth. >> But you got to tell me now. >> I did. >> You did?
>> Yeah. >> Tina Jones just pleaded guilty to attempted firstdegree murder in >> in August 2019. Tina Jones learned her
fate. She will spend the next 10 years in prison. >> 418 Alpha Center. >> 48 hours also tipped off detective
Michael Olry in Clarksville, Tennessee, [Music] who broke the news to then 22year-old
Sydney Miner. >> I got you, a single mom. >> Someone went on uh the dark web. There
is a murder for hire uh website and someone has paid to have you murdered. >> What?
>> What? >> Cydney who was pregnant with her second child quickly identified the father of
her unborn baby as a suspect. Brandon states Sydney says he had pressured her to get an abortion.
>> He's married. Didn't know it at the time. The only person in our mind was Brandon States
>> because because it was his child and she refused to get rid of the child. >> Brandon States eventually pleaded guilty
to attempted premeditated murder. In March 2019, the Army specialist was sentenced by a military court to 15
years in Fort Levvenworth. By his final court hearing, Sydney had given birth to a little girl named
Sailor. Brandon States asked to meet his daughter before going to prison. Sydney
reluctantly agreed and handed the little girl to the man who had paid money to kill them both.
>> Give me a sense of what was going through your mind at that moment. >> Fear. A lot of fear.
She had to meet him in a courtroom with police officers and armed guards. I told him, "I'll never forgive you for
what you've done." >> Around the same time in St. Louis, Abyspo, California, this man awaits trial.
>> We know that you wanted your stepmother murdered, but we don't know why. Why did
you do it? [Music] In late 2019, Bo Bighgam, a one-time YouTube star. >> I never did it for the money. I did it
cuz I had a lot of time on my hands, >> is on trial for solicitation of murder after 48 hours tipped authorities to his
case. In 2018, Brighgam allegedly had paid Ura to arrange the assassination of his
stepmother. During questioning by detectives, he seemed to acknowledge ordering the hit.
>> I remember going on some stupid site and I was in a rage just sending a bunch of
stuff. >> I do not deny he went to the site. I absolutely deny that he had any intention whatsoever of hurting his
stepmother. Defense attorney Elon Funky Belu says Bighgam wasn't serious. Evidence shows Bighgam paid less than $3
in Bitcoin toward the $5,000 hit. >> If there was true intent, it wouldn't stop at $2.95.
>> After nearly 3 weeks of testimony, it takes the jury 7 hours to find Bighgam guilty of solicitation of murder. and a
month later. >> So, I just came out of the courtroom. He was sentenced to just three years in
state prison. >> But with credit for time served, he was released in January 2020.
[Applause] [Music] Alexis Stern is frustrated that in her case, there hasn't even been an arrest.
48 hours tracked her ex-boyfriend Adrien Fry to this house in the city of Bath, England. And we're watching the place.
So far, he hasn't emerged. >> A hitman marketplace is like any other auction site.
>> The man who took the kill order Adrien allegedly made is still at large, too.
But Lisa says finding Ura may partly depend on exposing and flipping the people who work with him.
>> Everyone has a network, right? >> We uncovered information about an important thread in Eura's web.
[Music] A thread stretching all the way to the sprawling city of Kolkata, India. And a computer
contractor named Santo Sharma. Ura contracted Santa Sharma to assist him with digital marketing and promotion of
>> Ura had become so brazen he actually was promoting his dark web sites on the regular internet by hiring a marketing
specialist. Our producer in India Arshad Zar spent weeks looking for Chararma >> but we managed to track down both his
addresses. We tipped authorities who summoned Sharma to the police station. After they
questioned him, Chararma agreed to an interview with us. We asked him about the sites he created on the regular
internet to advertise ura sites on the dark web. >> What are the websites then you created
for him? >> I have created murder forhire.com, besafia.com, hire ahitman.com. He insisted he was just an everyday
internet marketer hired on a freelance job. >> Have you ever spoken to him? >> No. Um I just chat with him, chat and
email. I have asked her phone number. However, he didn't send me. >> He said they're not in touch at all
anymore and that he doesn't know Yura's real name or location, but wishes he did
because Ura scammed him, too. Urus still owes him about $400 and um and and he has been trying to get
in touch with him uh asking for the money. >> Sharma was released without charges, but
hacker Chris Montero says Ura's operations took a body blow. >> The work of 48 hours investigating
Santos Sharma in India, that was very important in shutting down his advertising operations.
Lisa wants to see Ura shut down completely. >> And she believes she's getting close to
finding him. >> And it'll be right up here, right on the right. I'm going to drop my head down.
My heart is racing. >> And we're closing in on Adrien Fry, too. He lives in this house west of London.
>> Here we go. Let's see what happens. Hey, good evening. We staked out Adrien Fry's house in
England. The young man Alexis believes ordered her murder and asked Ura about obtaining a gun. For days, it seemed
like nobody was home. Then one night in February 2020, take a look at this. A car has pulled up in front of the house.
So, we're going to head over now and go knock on the door. Let's see what happens
and see if we can speak face to face with Adrien Fry. >> Hey, good evening. My name is uh Peter
Vance. And I was wondering if Adrien's here. >> Adrienne's brother answered the door
saying Adrien was visiting friends. He gave us the name of a nearby town and we went to check it out but couldn't find
him. >> Would you ever meet with Adrien Fry again? >> Not unless he's behind bars.
>> But that now seems unlikely. In November 2019, Alexis Stern received a letter
from the FBI saying the case was being closed because the United States Attorney's Office has declined to
prosecute. >> But authorities never explained why the case was dropped and refused to tell 48
Hours what, if anything, they had ever done to investigate Adrien Fry or Ura. to all law enforcement. Just try and
close our side if you can. >> In our own two-year global search for Europe, >> we'd been stood up in the UK.
>> What What did he say? >> I don't think he's coming. >> Found Europe's marketing guru in India.
>> I have created murder forhire.com. Besamafia.com, >> but not Eura himself. and hit a dead end with that car ad in
Muldova, where we had hired a local researcher to track down the owners. Lisa now believes it's just a
coincidence that Frenza 22 appeared in the car ad. >> There's no direct correlation.
In January 2020, we followed Lisa's lead to a woman in New York City, who Lisa now believes is Ura's mother-in-law.
>> We've just left Manhattan. Where are we heading? >> Queens. Maybe we'll find Ura.
>> I hope so. >> It took 3 months of digging through digital clues for Lisa to uncover what
she calls strong evidence against the man she now believes is Ura. It includes a link to that unusual password,
Franza22. And 48 hours discovered an email address that included gun and killer connected
to the man Lisa found in New York City. >> It was enough to make me pause when I
saw that email address. Lisa believes the man had moved to the US from overseas in the 1990s and now owns a
large repair business, registered some kind of tech company, and most recently bought a restaurant.
>> I have high confidence that this man is very likely Eura. >> What's that confidence level if you put
it in a percentage? >> 75 to 80, which is in intelligence terms quite high. Lisa says there's no such
thing as 100% certainty on the secretive dark web. That's why we decided not to name the man or show his face.
And we're in a position where we can take a look down a sidewalk and see if he approaches.
>> We spotted him on a public sidewalk. >> That's him. Go. >> Hey, how you doing? I'm Peter Vans with
CBS News and we have uh some questions we'd like to get answered if we if we may.
>> Sure. >> That's our investigation of murder for hire on the dark web has led us here and I want
to ask you are you >> who? Ura, I don't know who you are. My name is >> Yura is a person who runs has run
various Murder for Hire uh sites on the dark web. >> What are you talking about? Can you
explain yourself? >> I then asked him about Franza 22, that potentially incriminating password.
>> How do you explain that on the Basa Mafia website the administrator uses a password Frenza 22? says to pay special
attention to the man's reaction after I mentioned the password. >> The minute you hit him with the evidence
that is the key piece of evidence in this case, the password, he immediately then shuts down and starts going, "No,
no, no, no. I don't want to be here." >> He then did something I've never seen before.
>> Before we start anything, I want to make sure the whole world knows what's going
on. He started streaming our conversation live on Facebook where he began speaking more to his followers
than to me. >> What's up guys? Something is going on. I got some guys over here.
>> This in itself is taking control of the communication. He wants his words and
his voice to be heard and not yours. >> You can answer my question. >> There's no here. We also tried to ask
the man about another striking similarity between him and Yura in the real world.
>> Well, Yura wrote us and said that he'd recently taken his money and opened a new restaurant right now,
>> which you've done that. >> And what restaurant are you talking about again? >> This restaurant not far from where we
met him. He opened the place in 2018. Just 6 months later, Ura wrote 48 hours that he had done the same.
>> Do you run these murder for hire websites? >> He's calling me some stupid names. Stop
recording right now. >> As his anger grew, >> I'm going to smack the out of your
camera right now. I'm telling you, >> the man suddenly made us an offer. >> No cameras allowed.
>> No idea who is. >> I have no idea who's Urist. You want to talk to me privately? Let's go to the
office. Me and you sit down. We'll talk without this. I turned him down because the situation was starting to feel
dangerous. >> Oh, hey guys. >> And our conversation. >> Who you think you are? >> I'm just Who you think you are? You make
>> was about to take a major hit. >> I'm a reporter, investigative reporter that's been following this for over a
year. >> Hey, come on now. Don't do that. >> That was just on video. That could be
that could be an assault. Don't do this. >> You assaulting me right now. I'm asking
you a question. the police and medical. >> Yes, we need the police to be sir. You
hit me. I see my >> I didn't hit you. >> Did you hit my camera? >> I hit your camera and you did it with
your own hands. I just >> We quickly left the scene. >> They chickened out ran away.
>> And the man still angry continued to stream live. >> Stupid website. Some freak created
something. Use my identity. >> Someone's using my identity. He's confirming that the information that
we've presented to him is legit. >> Yes, I'm asking you a question. I know you think you are
>> based on all of the evidence that has been accumulated. My confidence is still
quite high. >> In fact, she says having seen the video, it's even higher. >> Around 80 to 90%.
>> Over the next two weeks, we reached out to the man four times requesting an on
camera interview at CBS News. do give a call back and uh let us know your decision.
>> We were eager to hear any explanation for the apparent links between him and Europe. He apologized for his actions.
>> Who you think you are? >> But never sat down on camera. >> Adrien, this is Peter Vans correspond
though he did text us. >> Hi Peter. I can assure you that I did not go onto the online web to hire a
hitman or anyone to kill Alexis. But it was his last text declining our interview request that startled us.
Thank you for the opportunity, he wrote. We realized that just like mastermind 365,
Adrien had once again written thank you as one word. [Music] 48 hours. Don't miss an episode.
[Music] Simpsonville is a tight-knit 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 a great place to be a police
officer. Murders and serious assaults were few and far between. My name is Patty Pyiver and Katie Blavel
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 Blauvelt was working over there at
the armed 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 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 Blavevelt
went missing. >> She disappeared. >> She disappeared >> off the face of the earth.
>> Yes. And now nobody could 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 he advised me that they had found a body at an abandoned house, very dilapidated house.
>> How had she died? Has she been stabbed in the neck? >> John did it. I knew 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 Katie? >> No. >> Do you know who killed her?
>> No. >> Shortly after that interview is when he fled the state. >> John disappears and he is on the run.
John Blavel 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
fugitives, violent offenses. >> 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 Pyiver.
>> I just was terrified that something was going to happen to her. >> Then past midnight, October 26, 2016,
investigators Cheryl Scoffield and Keith Morcraft 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 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 Pyiver. >> I just prayed and cried and
just sick. Just sick. >> Morcraft and another investigator went to tell John Blauvelt his wife's body
had been found. >> We went to make the death notification. I'm so sorry for your loss, sir.
>> At first, Blt 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
die?" >> 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 Blavel did have one question, but
it wasn't about Katie. Am I being charged with a crime? Cuz he's recording me and I'm not comfortable with that.
>> You're not being charged, 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, Morcraft 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-l life public face of the US Army. A person of principle, 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 hit it off. She's lovable,
caring, funny. who wouldn't fall in love with her. >> In the summer of 2015, recruiter John
Blauvelt convinced Katie to enlist. But after just 2 months, a health issue prevented her from finishing her
training. >> They found a problem with her spine. She got 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 and 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 and
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 today." And
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. [Music] 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 Blau invited.
>> John had invited Katie's niece to stay with them. And later, Hannah Thompson and Ally Somerville crashed there, too.
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? >> Army recruiter. Yes. Letting us 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 Blavel 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 John's puppy. Um, anytime
that Jon 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 Bl'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 Blauvelt's house. When they arrive, what
happens? >> Um, they try to make contact with John and John refused to come outside.
>> Ally Somerville was inside the house with John and some other miners when police arrived.
>> And John was like, "Lock the door. Nobody go outside." >> What were they saying?
>> Like John Blavel like come out of the house with the 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 soldier's image replaced with
a mug shot. He's the exact opposite of what everybody thought he was. Exact opposite.
>> And soon Blavevelt's troubles would get even worse. Police talked to Katie the
day Bl. She told them about a more troubling incident she says happened a month earlier.
>> There had been a domestic violence incident where John allegedly uh pointed a gun at Katie.
>> Pulls out a gun, points it at her head. >> Yep. >> Says what? >> That he was going to kill her. and also
threatened the family. >> Threatened the family? What do you mean? To shoot. >> Threatened to kill the family.
>> Fountain Police Department investigated the matter and ended up charging him with domestic violence.
>> A restraining order was issued preventing Blavevelt 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 defined 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 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 John 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 Blt, the military career he cherished was in tatters. And according to Alli
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 Katie gone.
Police say Katie Blauvelt was last seen alive on October 24th, 2016 at her job at PetSmart.
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
Blauvelt? >> She did. >> The desperate search and the painful waiting began. >> I didn't think she was alive anymore. It
was 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.
[Music] 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. [Music]
>> 911. What's location of your emergency? >> We found my friend Katie dead in >> Okay. Okay. Are you saying she's dead in
the house? >> Yes, ma'am. >> Is she cold? >> She's very pale and there was no response.
>> Katie Blauvelt'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 26th, 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. >> Morcraft and Scullfield wanted more
information from Bl. 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 a friend. >> He told them he visited Katie at the
funeral home. Did you by yourself? >> Yeah. Well, I took a movie, did you? >> Blt said he hadn't seen Katie in months.
Their marriage had been a non-stop argument. >> What kind of stuff were y'all 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 Katie?
>> No. Okay. >> Do you know who he killed her? >> No. >> Sitting across talking to this man. What
are you sensing in John Bl? >> 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, Hannah 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 in catching a murder charge, >> right?
>> You're 17 years old. You got your entire life ahead of you. >> You may love John and you may think you
two are gonna 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 Hannah. She's right here. >> I don't want to look at her.
>> That's 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're trying to do. >> I want to help, but I can't listen. >> With no help from Hannah, police hands
were tied. >> We had to let him go. >> Potential hard evidence had to be processed, including Blt's 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 Abe 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 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 and 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 Marshalss. 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 murder. >> What kind of fugitive are you dealing with? >> Um, a cocky one. John thought we weren't
ever going to find him. US Marshal 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, Blt 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 couldn't wait to talk to her. >> We are very glad that you're back and
that you're safe and that nothing bad happened to you. >> Hannah's story was that John had left
her in Eugene, just up and walked away. >> Did you ever see John again? And Hannah added she had no idea where
Jon was headed, but apparently she had enough of life on the run. >> She thought it was going to be a fairy
tale. 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 John got the Yukon
stuck in the mud in the Pacific Northwest. >> Couldn't get out. Could not get out.
>> We said that we would hike. We had to hike walk off the mountain basically. >> Miles and miles.
>> The couple was reduced to panhandling for change >> and they use that for food sustainment.
Hannah says while on the road, Blt confessed, sharing the awful details of the killing.
He told me that the knife broke. I can't believe that he would do something like that.
But what else did he tell you about it? I know it's hard. He told me that the last thing she she said was that if he
let her go that she wouldn't call the police. >> Or were they him? >> 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 did all that stuff? >> 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 Blauvel 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 bl.
Has John contacted you by Facebook at all since you separated or contacted you by any means at all? No.
>> Please don't keep it a secret from from us. Okay. >> Okay. >> But if Hannah knew where John was, she
wasn't ready to tell them. >> I still care about him even though he did something like really
bad. Like I feel like I should hate him and part of me does, but part of me just keeps thinking about how
he used to be. >> Blt 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 Blice
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 Blavevelt for years. >> We had been talking the whole time. Like
at first we were talking every single day, multiple times, like for hours a day. Did anybody know you were still
talking to them? Hannah told investigators how they communicated. >> The very beginning we were communicating
on Facebook Messenger and then after that we were talking on Snapchat. >> She said their conversations ended in
2019. 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 John told her he had been living with another woman for years.
>> Cuz 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 Medford, 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 Tamayo 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. >> Stake 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 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.
>> Now, 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.
>> Right. It's about to happen. >> It is [Music] [Music] on July 20th, 2022, some 6 years after
Katie's death. Chris Tamayo joined marshals and other law enforcement for the take down of the
man they believed killed her. >> John's about 3/4 of the way down the driveway. And the guys start going right at him,
giving him 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 Glavvelt 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's stuck with Ben Klein. >> Ben Klene. >> We have a device that allows us to
mobiley 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 Lavll. 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.
>> Tomio recorded audio with her at the scene. >> So, he's being arrested um on charges
out of South Carolina. >> For what? >> For murder. >> Are you serious? >> Yeah. >> I can't even believe this. This is like
a nightmare. I'm sorry. >> Bl's girlfriend told the Marshalls she had no idea who he really was.
>> We've been together 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 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 Ay, who began putting the case against Blavevelt together a
few months after Katie was killed, would team with John Meadows preparing the case for trial. Starting with that blade
investigators found in Katie's 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 Blamed Katie for the
abrupt end of his military career. >> It's all Katie's salt. >> He's not responsible for what he did.
He's blaming his wife. >> Yes. >> And there were John Bl'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 boldly, "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
Pyiver described the child she adored. >> She was sunshine. I mean, everybody loved her. Ally
Somerville stared at the man she once called a role model. >> He looked like a stone cold killer to
me. >> The prosecution's key witness was Hannah Thompson. She would admit to helping
Blavevelt the day Katie died. >> You love John Bl. >> Yes. >> You helped him hide Katie's car after he
killed her? >> Yes. >> You didn't know he killed her then? >> No. >> But you 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 those >> in 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 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 Bl's defense team, Paul Neely and Anna Walker, made Hannah admit that her
story changed over the years. You've lied to your friends and your family. >> Yes.
>> And you kept lying? >> Yes. >> Then the defense zeroed in on the lack of DNA evidence at the scene.
>> Was there any DNA that tied John Bluffel to this murder? >> No. >> There was no DNA match to John Bl.
And what about John Blauvelt's journal in which he wrote, "I did it." His lawyers told 48 hours, "Much of it was a
fantasy." A lot 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 5 hours.
>> As to the charge of murder, we the jury unanimously find the defendant, John T.
Bly. John Blaved has been found guilty for the murder of his aranged wife, Katie Border Bl.
>> 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 Blauvelt 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 willing at that time to turn him in. I have hard feelings about that. It's
unfathomable. [Music] What would you say to your sister today if you could? [Music]
>> That I'm sorry, that I love her, and that I think she was brave. [Music] CBS next Saturday. A wife terrified of
her aranged 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 was going to happen. >> 48 hours is all new. CBS next Saturday,
10:9 central and streaming on Paramount Plus. [Music] It was so unusual for something like
this to happen right outside your door behind the gates of a beautiful community.
>> Well, as they say, a lot of things go on behind closed doors. >> The Chadwicks lived a very suburban
life. Peter was very quiet, very softspoken, QC. She was bubbly and vivacious. >> When you say bubbly and vivacious, did
she have a sense of humor? >> She was very funny. Yes. And so smart and talented, she could do anything. Our
kids started the same school as her children. They were all friends. You see, she came from Malaysia, not
speaking English, and she she met Peter in school. She told us Peter would work out of the home managing the family
investments. You know, they lived well. >> So, from the outside, did it seem like
the Chadwicks had this idyllic life? >> Yes, from the outside, it definitely seemed that way.
[Music] I work out of my house, so my office just faces the street here. Between 4:00
and 5:00 p.m., I saw cop cars in front of her house. >> 1120. >> And I'm thinking, "What's going on?"
>> One of our other friends, she came right up to me and said, "Karen, where's QC? Where's Peter?
>> 43. >> At that point, we just knew that she didn't pick up the kids. It was kind of
talk of the neighborhood and that Peter and her were missing. >> We send a patrol officer out there. So,
they go inside. It just looks like a typical Newport resident where there was lunch being prepared. The house is
immaculate. There's still vacuum lines in the carpet. Everything's made. It looks good.
And then when they go upstairs and they walk into the master bath, they realize there's a broken vase and a little bit
of blood splattered around. Now we're actually starting to get worried about it.
[Music] >> Investigators quickly identify Peter as a primary suspect in his wife's
disappearance. >> Chadwick was arrested but made bail and then he just disappeared.
In January 2015, Peter Chadwick becomes a fugitive from justice. >> The search intensifies for a millionaire
fugitive accused of murdering his wife and skipping bail. >> We had no idea this manhunt was going to
become the logistical monster that it has. >> Two. >> I mean, this manhunt has really expanded
the entire globe. >> But now that manhunt is over. Peter Chadwick's life on the run ended. And
we'll tell you how law enforcement got their man. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] [Music]
After nearly 5 years on the run, the international manhunt for Peter Chadwick, accused of killing his wife
QC, ended August 4th, 2019. We're pleased to announce that Peter Gregory Chadwick was located in Mexico
on Sunday night. With the help and cooperation of United States Marshall Service and authorities in Mexico, he
was flown to Los Angeles International Airport where our detectives took custody of him.
But how did it come to this? It's a twisted tale that began on a picture perfect autumn day back in
October 2012 in this posh neighborhood in Newport Beach, California. The couple had been living the good life, enjoying
the trappings of wealth and raising three sons, their oldest was away at boarding school. And when his two
younger brothers headed home that day, the family's world turned upside down. >> So these boys got out of school and what
happened? So they get out of school and a bus drops him off at a bus stop near their house in Newport Coast.
>> Sergeant Ryan Peters remembers that day. >> A neighbor saw him sitting at the bus
stop past the time that they typically get picked up by either Peter or QC. So she stopped and asked, "Have you reached
your mom and dad?" And they said, "No, they haven't been able to reach him." They were calling them. Nobody was
answering. >> It was very unusual for the Chadwicks not to be punctual. >> Lieutenant Brian Moore was called in
later. >> Dad should be here to pick them up. Dad is always here. Normal protocol during a
missing person's case is we're uh we're checking with friends, we're checking with relatives,
>> and checking the hospitals, checking with family, neighbors, anybody have any
idea where they are. >> All attempts to locate them were were a dead end. >> That same night, with their parents
still missing, the boys slept at a friend's house. Investigators combed the Chadwick home for clues. And then when
they go upstairs and they walk into the master bath, then that's when patrol realizes there's more to the story. In
the master bathroom, they initially saw the broken glass decorative glass that was around the bathroom tub, the edging.
>> We had blood at the bottom of the bathtub. As you continue through the downstairs, the safe is clearly a jar.
>> So, it's starting to look like more than just a welfare check situation. >> Yeah. Obviously, whoever left left in
haste. It looked quite suspicious. >> We were all in shock like, "Where is she? What's going on? Why is she
missing?" >> Word that the Chadwicks were gone spread quickly through the neighborhood. Heidi
lived just across the street. >> What were they like? >> Well, QC was the one with all the
personality. She was always looking forward to my annual Christmas party because she came over, she got to dress
up and she looked like a million dollars and she had fun. >> My first impression of her was that she
was a completely devoted mother. >> Karen Thorp had known QC for years. Their children went to school together.
She was very determined to make sure they were getting good grades and they were completing their assignments and
they were picking music and they were doing a sport and and she wanted them to be the best at everything.
>> And how were they? >> They were the best at everything. >> Their father Peter came from a wealthy
family. He was born in Britain and had dual citizenship. QC's family was also affluent. They met at Arizona State
University. Did you get the sense that she was very in love with him? >> Yes, that she was in love with him and
that she depended on him also. >> What do you mean depended on him? >> QC found our country to be a bit new and
strange, different from where she had come from and uh she was learning about how to do things here.
>> Did you get the sense that Peter liked her depending on him? >> Yes. Yeah. We definitely all felt that
he was completely comfortable with that. She was definitely less independent than
many of her friends. >> QC and Peter married in 1991. When he grew more successful, the couple moved
to that home in Newport Beach. They eventually had three sons. Art Scott taught the two older boys
piano. >> They were great students. They did everything I asked. I would teach him.
Then after a few months, after he got more advanced, I would teach him and it would expand beyond that as he
got committed and did more work. They're very bright kids. I really enjoy being in their home. She always had a beverage
for me and something to eat every single time. And that's doesn't happen, you know, every day for all the clients that
I see. And so she's very congenial, very much uh making me feel warm in her house.
>> And what was Peter like? >> He almost seemed painfully shy when we first met him. I felt like I never
really knew him very well. What did Peter do? >> At first, we didn't really know. We
thought he ran his own business and then we learned he managed some apartment buildings.
>> Was Peter kind of a mystery? Yes, Peter was a mystery. >> But Karen says she did sense that the
couple's dynamic had been evolving over the past few years. QC was really beginning to come into her own and be
her own person. I'd say she was less insecure about what to wear and what to do and she was able to follow more of
her way of doing things. So you could see the self-confidence. >> I could see the self-confidence. Yes. I
felt at the time like I really knew the family, but I have to say with so many things in life, you never really know
about people's inside lives and what's really going on. Now, police were left with two missing parents and those
disturbing clues in the master bathroom. >> And what were the boys saying? >> Boys had no idea where mom and dad were.
>> Anybody have any clue? >> No. At that point, nobody had any clue at all. >> But that wouldn't last long.
The first big break came here near the Mexican border in San Diego. It was just before dawn the day after when someone
here 100 miles from Newport Beach called 911 with an emergency. It was Peter Chadwick.
>> What emergency crystal? >> They took her. They took her. >> Who took her? The guy broke into my house. He He drove
me. He he he had a friend cuz they I think they're going uh they might be going to Mexico or somewhere.
[Music] In these surveillance pictures taken at a gas station near the Mexican border,
you can see Peter Chadwick he's about to make that 911 call. >> 911 killed my wife.
>> Chadwick tells the operator QC had been murdered. >> My wife's dead. They've gone in the
pickup truck. >> So your wife did that? >> She's dead. >> Hold on. Let me give him a few on his
phone. >> This is the gas station where Chadwick called 911. >> Yeah, this is where he chose to kick off
our investigation. >> And this was a huge break. >> This was huge. >> Sergeant Ryan Peters, just to get a
sense of where we are. How close are we to the border? Is that >> It's right there.
>> What are we looking at? >> We're looking at Tijana. >> We're that close. >> We're that close.
>> What did Chadwick tell 911? Chadwood calls 911 and says he was kidnapped. And
he was kidnapped by a guy named Juan who had killed his wife in Newport Beach. >> How do you know Juan?
>> I picked him up to to look at some painting work at the house. I brought him to the house.
>> So Peter and Juan go back to his home. And then what did Peter say happened? >> At some point Peter and Juan separated.
Juan continued upstairs and Peter went down to his office. Peter said within uh seconds he heard his wife QC screaming.
>> He hears QC scream, "Peter, Peter." And as he runs upstairs, he sees Juan strangling QC, who's in the bath in
their master bedroom, and he's drowning her. >> How do you know she's dead? >> She drowned. She drowned. Her body was
stiff. Even >> as he goes up and sees this, witnesses this, he's held at bay by Juan with a
2-in uh pocketk knife. >> Chadwick told police he was helpless to save QC. >> And instead of being able to rescue his
wife, he's held at bay by Juan, and Juan proceeds to finish killing his wife. >> Then Chadwick said Juan ordered him to
help get QC's body out of the tub and wrap it in a blanket. And Peter says he walks over and grabs a green blanket and
wraps her up in it. And that's the blanket they use to take her downstairs. >> With Juan at his side, Chadwick said he
was forced to drive all through the night with his wife's body in the back of his SUV.
>> I've been driving with him. I think they might be going to Mexico or somewhere. I want you to get him.
Chadwick says that's how they ended up here at this border town gas station where they met up with another man named
Chi. >> And they took the body out of Chadwick's car, put it in a truck, and took it to
Mexico. >> Chadwick says Juan and Chi drove away, leaving him alone with his vehicle in
this dreary parking lot. >> 911 emergency. This is Crystal. >> That's when Peter made his 911 call.
>> Okay. And where is she now? They have her body. They said they're going to cut
her up. >> What color car did one lead in? >> What? What? What? >> What color car did?
>> Dark green. Dark green. Uh um like a like a pickup van but covered. Um what do you call? Um and and uh Chevy.
>> Within a few minutes, police arrived and took him to the station. Lieutenant Brian Moore says his
detectives found holes in Chadwick's story. >> Any signs of Juan at all? >> No. >> Chadwick told 911 that QC was killed at
about 11:00 the previous morning, but surveillance footage shows Chadwick's SUV leaving his gated community in
Newport Beach about 2 and 1/2 hours after that. Police say there's no Juan in the vehicle. And later, Chadwick's at
a toll. Again, no sign of Juan. >> Everyone we talked to and described uh this Juan individual, no one had any
idea who that was or could give us any information related to this person. >> What about Chi?
>> No. Some of the video surveillance we picked up uh in the area where Peter said he met this chi person, there was
no other vehicles involved that we could see. What's more, Chadwick's own body had
some incriminating injuries. >> He had scratches on his neck and arms. He had a bite mark on his forearm.
>> Did he try to explain that as these came from Juan? >> He explained some sort of a struggle
between him and Juan, but there was never any specifics on how he obtained those injuries.
>> And then there was this a packed suitcase in Chadwick's car. We had a suitcase, all male clothing inside that
was just kind of thrown in there as if somebody kind of packed hastily. >> I'm sorry. There was a bag in the car of
men's clothes. What kind of kidnapper says, "Hey, go ahead and pack yourself an overnight bag,"
>> which is part of the problem. That's not normally uh the thing that happens. No.
[Music] >> QC's friend Karen says nothing Peter said made any sense. When you first heard that story, did you
buy it? >> Absolutely not. I don't even think the 911 operator bought it. If you've heard
the tape, she her reaction is Mhm. Really? Mhm. >> Okay. What? What? >> Down to he
>> Are you on any kind of medication, sir? >> Uh, not not not that uh heavy ones.
>> Okay. But this happened yesterday at 11:00. You're now calling us at 5:30 in the morning.
Detectives weren't buying any of it either. >> During the initial contact, Peter was
was kind of all over the map. His story was very disjointed. He'd go uh through the range of emotions, crying, however,
the officer never saw a tear to moments of anxiety and just complete quiet. >> So, he went from great displays of being
distraught to nothing. And the most interesting thing was during the entire contact with law enforcement and with
our detectives, he never once asked about his kids. >> He never asked about the boys.
>> No. >> And we're talking he hasn't seen them since the morning prior when he dropped
him off for school. >> What did that say to you? >> To me, it means that he he's more
concerned with his story, creating an alibi >> than he is about his own sons. >> It appeared so. Yes.
People's first feeling was that there had been a takeover robbery and they had both been
kidnapped. And I don't even know if there was speculation in the media about that, but
I never for a moment thought that it happened. I somehow knew he had killed her.
[Music] >> Hear more of Peter Chadwick's bizarre 911 call on Facebook at 48 hours.
[Music] I remember calling and I said, "He's killed her, hasn't he?" I I can't tell
you why I knew. My friend said, "Are you okay? Are you at work?" And I said, "I am, but I'm
going home now. On October 11th, 2012, just 6 hours after that 911 call, Peter Chadwick was
arrested for murder. >> He wasn't defensive, angry, sad, emotional in any way, as if somebody
that was being placed under arrest that was innocent would have acted. >> It almost like he wasn't surprised that
we were putting handcuffs on him. Chadwick quickly lawyered up and stopped talking to detectives. The community was
shocked. >> Just just unthinkable that that he would do that, that someone would do that and that she would be
gone. >> Karen Thorp could only guess what led to her friend's murder. I think over time
knowing QC it seemed that she wanted to become more independent and she would start doing more things
for herself and I wondered then if maybe some of her reservations and insecurity
were because of Peter. >> Why do you think she didn't confide in you? >> I think she was very proud. I think
everyone was shocked. Brian Moore believes QC had uncovered a dark side of her husband.
>> Probably the most telling things that we discovered uh was a handwritten piece of
paper that had Peter's computer search history on it. Looked like it was written out by QC.
>> And what did that say? >> How to torture Chinese sex massage. Uh abortion costs in Orange County.
>> These were all in his search history. >> Yes. So as we dug into it further, we started
to get the real account that that there was some turmoil in their marriage. There was some talk of divorce.
>> He visited prostitutes. >> Based on his search history, we have to assume so.
>> This isn't that happy Newport Beach family that it appeared to be from the outside.
>> Absolutely not. >> In court, Peter Chadwick pleaded not guilty. His two sons, who had lived at
home, were now with their mother's brother more than 50 miles away in the Los Angeles area. Their mother was
missing and presumably dead. >> Did the boys have any idea about what happened to their mother, what their dad
was doing? >> None whatsoever. >> Then, 7 days after Peter Chadwick called 911, detectives got another big break.
This time, a tip they say they can't discuss. That led them to a location in the
mountains, more than 100 miles from Newport Beach. This is remote. >> It's extremely remote. Kind of south San
Diego County in the middle of nowhere. >> So, where are we headed? >> So, we're going to crime scene number
two. Detectives found themselves on this barren mountainside in rural San Diego County, Wildcat Canyon. They believe
Peter Chadwick came here that night. >> What do you think he's thinking as he's driving up this road?
>> If you kind of put yourself in his position, he's been driving around for hours, over 10 hours, with QC's body in
the car. He needs to find a place to drop the body. He needs to find a place to drop the body where he's not going to
be seen or it's dark and it's not going to be seen anytime soon after he drops it.
>> The first place he comes to is this little road. Yeah, it's right here. >> That's it.
>> That's it. >> So, this is where he stopped. >> We were not sure if we're ever going to
find her. The chances were slim to none. When we lift it up, it was full. >> So, what did you see?
>> We started finding QC's items. We found nice bags. We found a really nice purse.
So, we set those aside. When we opened up the bag, that's when we found QC's ID, her permanent residency card,
$10,000 cash. And all of this stuff is the stuff that he described Juan taking with QC's body into Mexico.
[Music] and wrapped in that green blanket, QC's body. >> It was a huge break for us. The dumpster
was scheduled to be picked up the Thursday morning, which was the next morning after we believe Peter disposed
of QC's body. The issue with that was there was some kind of billing dispute. >> So, they were supposed to pick up the
dumpster, but they didn't. Once detectives finally found QC, the medical examiner was able to determine
how she died. >> There was a pretty violent struggle, which resulted in strangulation and
possible drowning. >> As the state built its case against Peter Chadwick, he sat in jail. That is
for 2 months until December when bail was set at $1 million. No sweat for the multi-millionaire businessman. I heard
he got out on bail and I remember being absolutely infuriated and disgusted that he should
not be out on bail. >> Prosecutor Matt Murphy says the court really had no choice. Chadwick was
entitled to bail. >> We had a guy that had he had no criminal background. Um he had roots in the
community. Chadwick also had that multi-million dollar home and three sons and he surrendered his US and UK
passports. >> We can keep him on a short leash. We can keep him, you know, engaged in the in
the process. We can keep, you know, we can keep eyes on him. >> Peter came back and got her van, which
was really creepy. He returned to get her van because his car was impounded. So he drove off with her man and I was
just happened to be out in the street and he gave me a nod and I'm just like turned my head in disgust.
>> Even before Chadwick could face trial, Karen's mind was made up. >> He was shame shameless. Talk about
Hudspa. He sent out an email inviting people to a 100 day vigil, candlelight vigil
at the home where he murdered her. How can you kill your wife, throw her in a dumpster, and hold a candlelight vigil
at the home where you killed her? Two years passed. Chadwick moved into his father's home in Santa Barbara, a
swanky town up the coast. All three sons ended up in boarding school. >> How solid did you think your case was as
you headed for trial? >> Extremely solid. I mean, with all the circumstantial evidence, the body, the
the injuries, and uh the lack of plausibility on on behalf of Peter's story. So, overall, we thought we had
this thing wrapped up. >> So, as you're looking down the road, you're thinking Peter Chadwick is going
to end up where >> in prison. >> But Peter Chadwick had other plans. >> Breaking news to tell you about an
accused murderer on the run from California. [Applause] Peter Chadwick was awaiting trial and
making his court appearances for hearings, doing what he was supposed to do >> until he wasn't anymore.
>> Yeah. We got word from his attorney that said, "I don't know where he is." After
two years out on bail, Peter Chadwick disappeared. >> This is one of the most wanted suspects
in the entire United States. >> What do you mean he's gone? You know, didn't somebody keep an eye on this guy?
Prosecutor Matt Murphy was outraged. >> Nobody thought that he would flee from his sons.
He abandoned his family. He made his attorney look terrible. And he thumbmed his nose at the court and the justice
system. Is part of this just that rich guys can get away with an awful lot? >> You know, it's it's just it's
frustrating. You shouldn't be able to take advantage of the system because you have money.
And you know, that's that's what happened here. Most people can't afford this bail. You shouldn't be able to do
this because you got money. He took full advantage and he uses financial resources to do it. a million dollars
bail really wasn't enough to keep someone as coldhearted and narcissistic as him to
stay around. >> At first, investigators heard that Peter Chadwick might be dead.
>> Initially, Michael Chadwick started relaying information that he was suicidal.
>> So, Michael Chadwick, Peter's dad, said he was going to kill himself, that Peter
was going to kill himself. >> He alluded to the fact that he was suicidal. I don't know if it was his
attorney or his father had said he had been despondent and suicidal. No. >> By the time investigators realized that
he'd flown the coupe, Chadwick was long gone. He had a 3-w weekek lead on them, and
he'd been studying up. They discovered books in Chadwick's home on how to disappear and how to change identities
and leave false trails. Investigators learned from a taxi company that someone who police now
believe was Peter Chadwick took a cab from his dad's house to this airport here in Santa Barbara. And get this, the
cab driver says that the person he picked up that day was a woman. So, was Peter Chadwick in disguise?
When he got here, he went inside with his suitcase and then he must have changed clothes because surveillance
cameras have pictures of Chadwick dressed as himself hanging out at the Santa Barbara airport. Hours ticked by,
but he never got on a plane. Instead, he went back outside, got into another cab,
and drove away. And that's the last anyone here saw of Peter Chadwick. The search for Chadwick was now an
international manhunt with the US Marshals leading the way. >> Here they are training in the mountains
above Los Angeles. >> We're going to catch him. Marshall Craig McCcluskey led the team
that would track Chadwick. >> He's going to make a mistake. Um we're going to choke him off and grab him.
Not only did Chadwick have a head start, his life on the run would be well financed.
>> What makes him so difficult to find is the fact that he fled with a decent amount of money.
>> So it was about a million dollars that he had in cash when he left. >> Approximately a million dollars. Yes.
>> Do you feel like he slipped through your fingers? >> Yeah. I I honestly wished uh you know we
could have wrapped this case up a lot sooner. He got the better of us at this point.
>> Once you find a string, you got to start pulling on it. And uh we found a couple
strings >> before the final tip that led investigators to Mexico. Tips had come from everywhere.
>> The countries that we've had active leads in that we've pursued include Japan. They include Canada,
Bise, Panama, the Ukraine. McCluskey was convinced Chadwick was getting help while on the lamb.
>> I didn't think this case was going to turn into what it did. But I think one reason that it did is not because
Peter's smart. It's not because he was savvy. It's not because he outsmarted us. It's because he's getting help. And
I think once we cut him off from his source of help that he's going to make a mistake and we're going to catch him.
Karen Thorp had always hoped whoever was helping Peter Chadwick might have a change of heart.
Someone needs to come forward. Someone with a conscience, someone who cares about those kids and
who cares about what has happened to this lovely woman, this lovely devoted mother who has no justice.
Justice would be in reach when the manhunt ended south of the border. But wait, do you hear what Chadwick was
doing while on the lamb? >> He went from a real estate millionaire to busting tables,
>> right? I think he was just desperate to fit in and stay on the run. He was willing to do anything to sustain his
flight. >> All right, good to go. >> Learn more about Peter Chadwick's life on the run in Mexico at 48 hours.com.
After almost 5 years, basically overnight, everything changed. August 4th, 2019, 48 Hours learned of a new
dramatic development in the Peter Chadwick investigation. 48 Hours had the only news crew on the
scene when Peter Chadwick landed in Los Angeles yesterday. He disappeared in 2015 after being charged with killing
his wife. >> In handcuffs and shackles, authorities had their man and Newport Beach Police
Chief John Lewis made the official announcement. >> After receiving hundreds and hundreds of
tips from all over the world, one of them led us to our suspect. >> The chief would not go into detail about
what that tip was. Chadwick was picked up by Mexican federal police near the city of Puebla, south of Mexico City. I
believe he was surprised. I don't think he expected to be arrested. >> Marshall Craig McCluskey was at the
airport in Los Angeles when Chadwick arrived and he slapped the cuffs on him. >> What's the first thing you said to him?
>> Peter, my name is Craig McCcluskey from the US Marshalss. I'm placing you into
the custody of the United States Marshall Service. I think he had recognized me from the initial 48 hours
episode that aired. >> Oh, wait. He watched the 48 hours episode. >> I believe he did.
He's going to make a mistake. Um, we're going to choke him off and grab him. >> Our 48 Hours report on the hunt for
Peter Chadwick aired in May 2019. >> And he recognized you from the 48 hours. >> Well, cuz the first question he asked me
looked me right in the face and he asked me, "How's Ben?" And Ben's his oldest son. I guess he assumed that I had some
contact with his family. He said when he saw that episode, he realized that his situation had escalated a lot because he
didn't realize the US Marshalss were after him at that point. >> So, he was watching us watching him.
>> In essence, yes. >> And he knew he knew how many people were after him. He'd seen the coverage.
>> He really became stressed out. That was an incredible weight. Yeah. I mean, looking over your shoulder every day.
Details are still murky about where Chadwick spent all his years on the run, but when he was picked up in Mexico, he
was living in this apartment. >> Peter was in a small village outside of Pueblo, Mexico, about 2 hours north of
the Guatemalan border and about an hour and a half south of uh Mexico City. The makeup of that town was um mostly
Caucasian, but also Asian community as well. >> His hideout was next to a country club,
>> had tennis courts, and of course, Peter preferred playing tennis. He continued
to play tennis. >> Yes. >> Did he change his appearance? >> He changed his appearance slightly. So,
his hair was a little darker. Um, he had some facial hair, so he had a goatee. He
tried to make himself a little younger, and I think he was successful in that. I
mean, his face looked a little a little different. >> A little nip and tuck in Mexico,
>> possibly. I don't know for sure. >> Chadwick apparently used many fake IDs and aliases, including Paul Cook, Paul
Craig, and John Franklin. He even had an ID card that it was a copy of some fictional security force and he was
representing himself as some type of analyst with top secret access with his photo on it.
>> What do you think he used that for? >> Maybe to get some unassuming uh local police officers off his back.
>> It's essentially a toy ID saying, "Hey, I'm a secret agent." >> Correct. But strangely, Chadwick never got a fake
passport, and that may have forced him into some lifestyle changes. He'd started off his escape staying in nice
hotels, and he stayed in some fancy hotels at the beginning. >> He did stay in hotels. I think he
started to change his pattern when Mexico started changing some of their immigration laws where they required
visas for non-citizens when they checked into hotels, which forced him into, you
know, more discreet places like hostels, you know, that would accept cash and and
no identification. [Music] >> And then there was money. Even though authorities figure he had about a
million dollars in cash when he fled, he occupied his days picking up odd jobs. >> What was he doing for money? He did flee
with a large sum of money. Most of it he lived off of that, but I think he did some small things on the side, maybe um
taught conversational English or something like that uh to children to make a few extra bucks. I think he was
busing tables, um working in kitchens, >> but he went from a real estate millionaire to busing tables,
>> right? I think he was just desperate to fit in and stay on the run. He was willing to do anything to sustain his
flight. One of the biggest investigative breaks that led the marshals to Chadwick was
their discovery that he was in communication with people who knew him. >> We learned that he was receiving help
from those close to him. To what extent, I don't know. And how the quantities of
money that were provided to him, I don't know exactly, but uh we know that he was
getting some assistance from those close to him back up here still. That information, combined with the new tip
and old-fashioned police work by Newport Beach police, the marshals, and Mexican
authorities, ultimately led to Chadwick's arrest. >> The bizarre thing is that this took, you
know, nearly 5 years to unfold and then boom, it happened overnight. >> Yeah. >> That's entirely due to the relationship
we had with the Mexican authorities, their response to uh intelligence that was gathered and their own intelligence
gathering techniques. You mean that that's really what paid off. >> At this point, authorities are not
saying if they'll charge anyone else in connection with Chadwick's escape. Meanwhile, they're savoring their
victory. Chief Lewis says he always knew Chadwick's days were numbered. >> Did you ever for a moment think he's
gone forever? >> Not for a minute. I believe in our investigators. I believe in our process.
I believe in the in the heart of this police department towards solving these cases. And so in my mind, it was just a
matter of time before we got him. It wasn't going to be a if, it was a when. >> Did he seem at all
relieved? >> He did at the end a little bit. He says something along the lines of, "It was
getting hard to keep up with the lies." >> Police say he was captured in Mexico.
>> For Karen Thorp, QC's close friend, Chadwick's capture brings mixed emotion. >> What's it like to see that?
I'm angry. I'm repulsed. I want to make him know the pain that everybody else suffered.
>> One of the things that we heard was that he was at a resort in Mexico. What do
you think of that? >> Outrageous. Somebody who could do this to her and then live the high life is
just a testament to his coldness and his depravity. And that coldness, investigators say,
extended to Chadwick's willingness to abandon his three sons forever. >> Our investigation shows that Peter
Chadwick never intended to return from Mexico. He had no intentions of coming back to Orange County to face trial or
to raise the three sons that he had abandoned. Speaking of the boys, our hearts go out
to them. We'd ask that everyone respect their privacy during this incredibly emotional time. We don't know how the
Chadwick boys have reacted to their father's capture, but we do know that in recent months, Karen Thorp told us
they've been doing well. >> Do you have a sense of how the boys are doing? >> They're really, really strong, really
really supported by QC's family. There's so much love around them and so much love
for them. They've really they've continued to flourish in spite of of this tragedy.
>> And that is a fitting tribute to a dedicated mom whose life was cut so short.
[Music] We lost in QC a mother who cared for her children deeply and who loved life and
love vibrancy and loved to give her children all that she possibly could. [Music]
A young woman waiting for her wedding day. Her fiance gunned down. >> Someone had a vendetta against Patrick.
>> Did police uncover a plan for murder? >> This wasn't a random killing. It was an
assassination. >> 48 hours, Saturday on CBS.

“48 Hours" reports on incredible manhunts for suspected criminals. Watch the YouTube mini-marathon, which includes "Find Yura: Manhunt on the Dark Web," "Cati Blauvelt: Death of a Soldier's Wife" and "Peter Chadwick: Caught."

00:00 Find Yura: Manhunt on the Dark Web 41:46 Cati Blauvelt: Death of a Soldier's Wife 1:23:49 Peter Chadwick: Caught

Crime. Social justice. Impact. "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.

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Brief Summary

Alexis Stern discovers a hit was ordered on her via the dark web, prompting a chilling investigation into Ura and her ex-boyfriend.

Key points

Teenager's Life Threatened. Alexis Stern learns someone has put a hit out on her life, sending her into panic.
Ex-Boyfriend's Threat. Alexis suspects her ex-boyfriend Adrien Fry ordered the hit on her life after their breakup.
Bo Bighgam's Trial. Bo Bighgam is found guilty of solicitation of murder after a tense trial.
The Search for Ura. Investigators uncover a network linked to Ura, a hitman marketplace operator.
John Blauvelt's Disturbing Reaction. John Blauvelt's demeanor raises suspicions after being informed of his wife's death.
John's Threats. After losing his military career, John threatens Katie's life, revealing his dark side.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I was like, this is a joke, right?

5:01WatchJul 26, 2025

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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