NEW JERSEY (KYW Newsradio) — The body of a woman found in Belleplain State Forest last month has been identified, and her ex-boyfriend is now facing charges.
Laura Hughes, 50, went missing over the summer. On Dec. 22, her body was found inside a refrigerator that, according to court documents, was tied shut and covered with a sleeping bag and carpet at the state forest in Dennis Township. The death is believed to have happened in the summer.
Her ex-boyfriend, 45-year-old Christopher Blevins, is charged with dumping the refrigerator there and trying to cover it up. Investigators say they spotted his green pickup truck with a refrigerator in the back on license plate reading cameras.
After he allegedly dumped the body, police say Blevins fled to Mexico, crossing the border in the same green pickup truck. There, he turned himself in to police and told them he may have killed someone during a bar fight in Runnemede then panicked.
A cause of death has not been determined, so homicide charges were not filed. Blevins is being held on charges of desecrating human remains and hindering the investigation. Authorities didn’t say where he’s being held.