Man Killed Girlfriend Who Was Found In Fridge At State Forest: Camden Co. Prosecutor

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RUNNEMEDE, NJ — A Camden County man was charged with the murder of his girlfriend more than a month after the victim's body was discovered in a refrigerator at a state forest, officials said Wednesday.

Christopher Blevins, 45, of Runnemede, was charged Jan. 29 with first-degree murder in the death of Laura Hughes. Blevins was previously charged with desecrating human remains and hindering apprehension in the case.

Blevins has been incarcerated in San Diego, California, since mid-January. His extradition to New Jersey is pending, according to the Camden County Prosecutor's Office.

On Dec. 22, the body of Hughes was discovered inside a refrigerator at Belleplain State Forest in Cape May County, authorities said. It took investigators several weeks to identify the victim.

She was 50.

Officials have not revealed when Hughes was allegedly killed or the manner of her death. But previously, authorities said they believe the fridge with her body was brought to the forest over the summer.

In late July, automatic license plate readers captured Blevins's pickup truck with a refrigerator-shaped object in Sea Isle City and Long Beach Township, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. Investigators later found blue ratchet straps, a gun and a calendar with the days marked "x" until July 24 in the home that Blevins shared with Hughes, the Inquirer reported.

The refrigerator was wrapped in a sleeping bag and secured with blue ratchet straps, according to an affidavit into Blevins's arrest.

Blevins fled to Mexico on Aug. 2 and surrendered himself to Mexican authorities on Aug. 27, according to NJ Advance Media, citing an affidavit of probable cause. He told them he had been involved in a "violent incident" in Runnemede and "panicked," and that he may have killed someone in a bar fight, according to the report.

The man was charged Jan. 3 with second-degree desecrating human remains and third-degree hindering apprehension in Cape May County.

Blevins was arrested Jan. 13 in San Diego.