Cati Blauvelt Was Found Stabbed to Death in a Basement — Then, Her Husband Fled with His Teenage Girlfriend. Inside the Case
Cati Blauvelt; John BlauveltCredit: Cati Blauvelt/Facebook; 48 Hours/YoutubeThe murder of Cati Blauvelt is the subject of an ABC ‘20/20’ episode, which aired on Oct. 9
Cati Blauvelt was found dead in a dilapidated South Carolina home in 2016
Her estranged husband and ex-Army recruiter John Blauvelt went on the run after her murder
John was arrested years later and sentenced to life in prison without parole
After Cati Blauvelt was found dead in an abandoned South Carolina home, her estranged husband John Blauvelt deserted the Army and went on the run for years.
On Oct. 24, 2016, Cati was found stabbed to death with a knife, per Greenville News. About a month after her body was found, police obtained warrants for John’s arrest for murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime, according to a 2022 statement from the U.S. Marshals Service.
However, John had fled the area with his 17-year-old girlfriend, Hannah Thompson. He was on the run for six years before he was taken into custody in Oregon in 2022. The tragic case is the subject of an ABC 20/20 episode, which aired on Oct. 9.
Here’s what to know about Cati Blauvelt’s murder at the hands of her estranged husband John Blauvelt.
In October 2016, Cati Blauvelt’s body was found in an abandoned house
Cati BlauveltCredit: Cati Blauvelt/Facebook;
Cati, who was 22 years old, was last seen alive on Oct. 23, 2016, at her job at PetSmart, per 20/20. Her family reported her missing later that day after she failed to meet up with her friends after work, according to the U.S. Marshals Service.
During the search for Cati, several of her friends went to an old, abandoned farmhouse in their town of Simpsonville, S.C., that they had used as a hangout spot, per 20/20. According to Simpsonville Interim Police Chief Steve Moore, the home had been abandoned for 20 years and was difficult to get to due to its location in a wooded area and overgrown vegetation on the property, the Greenville News reported.
Her friends discovered Cati’s body in the basement, per 20/20. She had been stuffed in a concrete box with a knife in her neck, according to 48 Hours, and had bled to death after being stabbed, per 20/20.
Her estranged husband John Blauvelt deserted the Army and fled the area with his teenage girlfriend
At the time of Cati’s murder, John was a U.S. Army recruiter in Greenville County, according to the U.S. Marshals Service. He and Cati dated for a year before eloping at a courthouse, per 48 Hours.
They had separated a few months before her death, at which point, Hannah — John’s 17-year-old girlfriend whom he had met when he invited local kids to party at his house — moved in, according to 20/20. After Hannah’s father reported her missing, John was arrested in February 2016 and charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor, per 48 Hours.
During the delinquency investigation, Cati told investigators about a previous domestic violence incident and he was charged with domestic violence, according to the show. She then filed a restraining order against him.
“He blamed her for ruining his life,” Cati’s stepsister Jennifer Piver told 48 Hours. “Because there was obviously gonna be a consequence from the military.”
The Army ultimately cut John’s pay and reassigned him to a back office role.
After Cati’s death in October, John denied any involvement. However, he remained suspicious to investigators, who said he didn’t appear to be surprised by the news.
“Didn’t ask normal questions such as, ‘Where did you find her? How did she die?’ ” investigator Keith Morecraft told 48 Hours. “He didn’t seem to be [shocked] at all.”
In video footage, John then appeared at Cati’s funeral with Hannah, according to 20/20. Just days after the funeral, John and Hannah fled the area.
Police obtained warrants for John’s arrest for murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime on Nov. 18, 2016, per the U.S. Marshals Service. When the U.S. Marshals Service joined the hunt for John, the agency learned he and Hannah had traveled through Alabama, Texas and California, in addition to New Mexico, per the statement.
Hannah’s parents reported her missing on Nov. 21, 2016. She was later found on Dec. 12, 2016, in Oregon, where she was allegedly abandoned by John, contacted a family friend and told her parents she wanted to go home, according to the U.S. Marshals Service statement. She said they were homeless while they were living in Oregon.
Hannah was charged with five felony counts: two counts of misprision (or concealment) of a felony, two counts of obstruction of justice and one count of accessory after the fact, according to 7 News. She pleaded not guilty, according to 48 Hours.
She later pleaded guilty to one count of obstruction of justice and one count of misprision of a felony on Aug. 20, 2025, and was sentenced to three years of probation, per the show.
After six years on the run, John was arrested in Oregon in July 2022
John BlauveltCredit: Simpsonville Police Department
In 2022, a U.S. Marshals dedicated cold case investigative team joined the hunt for John. They questioned Hannah again, who revealed she had been messaging with John for about two years after she returned to South Carolina, per 20/20. She said he may be living in Oregon with another woman.
The team eventually located him in Medford, Ore., where he was living with a woman named Stephanie, per 20/20. John was using the alias “Ben Klein,” per the U.S. Marshals Service, and was spotted shirtless on Stephanie’s front lawn during a drive-by, per 20/20.
John was arrested on July 20 of that year, according to the U.S. Marshals Service.
He was sentenced to life in prison in September 2024
In September 2024, John was sentenced to life in prison without parole, after being convicted of murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime, per Court TV. He is appealing his conviction, according to 20/20.
Cati’s loved ones remembered her during the Oct. 9 episode of 20/20. “She had the biggest heart I think I’ve ever known,” Cati’s friend and coworker Maggie Jones told the show. “Never met anybody that she was unkind to. Absolutely obsessed with animals. Loved Harry Potter.”
“She was a beautiful soul who did not deserve this,” Cati’s mother, Patti Piver, told the series.
Source: Crime