Laura Hughes, a 50-year-old woman and mother-of-two, was found dead inside a fridge and wrapped in a sleeping bag in a forest in New Jersey. Police identified Christopher Blevins, Hughes' boyfriend, as the primary suspect and later charged I'm with disturbing and desecrating human remains and hindering apprehension. No murder charges have been issued and Blevins is on the run, having reportedly fled to Mexico in August 2024.
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According to 6abc, a license plate reader captured Blevins' green Dodge Ram transporting a "refrigerator-shaped object" back in July 2024. One month later, Blevins crossed the border to Mexico while driving the same vehicle. He would then surrender to authorities in Mexico City on August 27, 2024. He told authorities that he fled from a "violent incident" that took place in New Jersey. Allegedly, Blevins told police he might have "killed someone in a bar fight."
However, Blevins was released, and the body of Hughes remained inside the fridge for months. On December 22, 2024, a man named John Tyrrell found the body inside the refrigerator at Belleplain State Forest. Police charged Tyrrell, however, with obstruction, as he refused to give over his cell phone.
Police posted images and mockups of Hughes' tattoos in an effort to identify her body. Her ex-husband, and father of her children, Cornel Alston, identified her remains.
"I was out to dinner when police came to my house," Alston told the Daily Voice. "My daughter FaceTimed me and said the officers needed to talk to me. A friend mentioned details—the tattoos and the necklace—and said it sounded like Laura. That's when I knew it was her."
A Mother Of Two
Laura Hughes and Christopher Blevins moved to Runnymede in 2023, according to the Daily Mail. They have previously been living in Danville, Virginia. For Alston, Hughes moving to New Jersey was an opportunity for her to reconnect with her daughters.
Alston said that Hughes "wanted to be near her kids." However, Blevins made it difficult, and according to him, Hughes was "unhappy and planning to leave him." "It was like she was his mom—he struggled with drugs and alcohol," Alston added.
"I'm numb personally because it is not about me," Alston said. "I have to remain strong for my daughters being there for them. One of the toughest things I had to do was tell them how she would no longer have the opportunity to be in their lives every day. Then safe-guarding them from the internet and other people's opinions online."
A GoFundMe campaign was set up to cover Hughes' cremation expenses. Police have not determined an official cause of death and Blevins is on the run.
