John Tufton Blauvelt was on the run for six years before his arrest in 2022
Simpsonville Police Department; Cati Blauvelt/Facebook
John Tufton Blauvelt; Catherine “Cati” Blauvelt
A former U.S. Army recruiter is accused of killing his wife to be with his teenage girlfriend, and he will soon learn his fate.
Closing arguments in the trial of former South Carolina fugitive John Tufton Blauvelt, who is charged with murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime, concluded on Friday, September 20.
Blauvelt is accused of fatally stabbing his estranged wife, Catherine “Cati” Blauvelt, 22, in October 2016 before running off with his then 17-year-old girlfriend, Hannah Thompson of Fountain Inn, according to a statement from the U.S. Marshals Service.
In July 2022, U.S. Marshals arrested Blauvelt in Oregon after he had been on the run for six years, the statement said.
Cati was last seen leaving the Greenville pet store where she worked around 2:15 p.m. on Oct. 23, 2016, the U.S. Marshals said.
Her family reported her missing because she didn’t meet up with her friends after work.
According to the U.S. Marshals Service, Cati’s body was found the next day, on October 24, 2016, in the basement of an abandoned home in Simpsonville. She was covered in stab wounds.
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The day before Cati’s body was found, John fled the state with his then 17-year-old girlfriend, Hannah Thompson of Fountain Inn, the U.S. Marshals said in the statement.
Blauvelt, who was working as a U.S. Army recruiter in Greenville County at the time of the killing, was classified as a deserter shortly afterward, the U.S. Marshals said.
On November 18, 2016, Simpsonville police obtained an arrest warrant for Blauvelt on charges of murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime.
According to the U.S. Marshals, Thompson’s parents reported the teen missing to the Fountain Inn police on November 21, 2016.
Thompson was found safe in Oregon on Dec. 12, 2016, after being abandoned by Blauvelt, the U.S. Marshals said in a statement.
She went to a family friend’s house in Eugene and called her parents, saying she wanted to come home. She and Blauvelt had been homeless while in Oregon.
As PEOPLE previously reported, Thompson was arrested and charged with helping Blauvelt the day Cati was killed and lying to police about his whereabouts, Simpsonville police said.
Related: Woman Allegedly Helped Boyfriend Cover Up His Wife’s 2016 Murder When She Was A Teen, Now She’s Arrested
According to Simpsonville police, Thompson was charged with two counts of embezzlement (or concealment) of a felony, two counts of obstruction of justice and one count of accessory after the fact.
She has pleaded her innocence and is still awaiting trial.
Her attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
As the jury reaches its verdict, Cati’s family is relieved that Blauvelt has appeared in court.
“Well, we will never forget her,” Cati’s mother, Patricia Piver, said, Fox Carolina reports. “Even after this is all over, she will never be forgotten. We will always fight for her and we will always fight for what is right and to keep her memory alive.”
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