A soldier goes AWOL, on the run with his 17-year-old girlfriend, right after his wife’s murder. Is she in danger?

Hannah Thompson, 17, was on the run, heading out of Simpsonville, South Carolina with her boyfriend, U.S. Army soldier John Blauvelt. On Oct. 26, 2016, Cati Blauvelt, his wife of just a few months, had been found stabbed to death, her body left in a concrete box in an abandoned farmhouse. The knife blade broken off and left in her neck.

“48 Hours” and correspondent Peter Van Sant reports on the case in “Cati Blauvelt: Death of A Soldier’s Wife,” airing Saturday, March 8, at 10/9c on CBS and streaming on Paramount+.

After investigators gave the news to John Blauvelt, he became their prime suspect. Investigator Keith Morecraft spoke with him and noted that he didn’t seem surprised, “didn’t ask normal questions … such as … where did you find her? How did she die?” And Investigator Cheryl Schofield was concerned for Thompson’s safety, stating “If he was willing to kill his own wife, there’s no telling what kind of danger Hannah Thompson would’ve been in by fleeing with him.”

Cati Blauvelt was just 22. She loved animals and had many friends. Her mother Patti Piver described Cati as “a free spirit … 5’1″f … a teeny, little thing.” She had met John Blauvelt when she was 20 and he was 26. John Blauvelt was well-known and respected by many in the small city of 20,000. He was a recruiter for the U.S. Army. He loved being part of the U.S. military. The job put him in touch with many of the area’s young people.

At the time, Cati worked at a restaurant next door to the recruiting office. They started dating. Friends say that initially they seemed like a happy couple. But that changed fast, almost as soon as they got back from their honeymoon.

The home John Blauvelt owned, and that Cati Blauvelt moved into, was turned into a party house. John Blauvelt invited underaged kids there, to smoke weed, drink, and do drugs. Cati Blauvelt had wanted to start a new life and build a family with John. Instead, she got a crash pad. One of the kids John Blauvelt welcomed was Hannah Thompson. Friend Aly Somerville would say that Hannah was “a 100%” in love with John Blauvelt. Schofield said Thompson was like “John’s puppy” and would do anything John Blauvelt wanted. And adds Schofield, Thompson hated Cati Blauvelt.

A bad situation got much worse the night of Feb. 26, 2016, when police — alerted by Thompson’s father — showed up at John Blauvelt’s house. He would be charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor, his soldier’s image replaced with a mug shot. That same day, Cati Blauvelt told police that a month earlier, John Blauvelt had threatened her with a gun. For that he would be charged with domestic violence.

John Blauvelt’s Army career was in tatters. The Department of the Army cut his pay and disciplined him, removing him from the recruiting duties that defined him. John Blauvelt reportedly blamed Cati Blauvert and told friends he intended to get revenge. Investigators say that was at the heart of why he murdered Cati. But before cops could build their case, John Blauvelt went on the run; with him was 17-year-old Hannah Thompson.

They would head toward the Pacific Northwest, but after a month, Thompson had enough of life on the run. She headed back home to Simpsonville. Then, over several years, she began to slowly provide information to authorities as to where she thought John Blauvelt might be. Leads Thompson provided, in part, led them to a house in Medford, Oregon. 

On July 20, 2022, six years after Cati Blauvelt’s murder, U.S. Marshals and other law enforcement arrested John Blauvelt. He was brought back to face a South Carolina jury.  Thompson would be a key witness against John Blauvelt. He would be convicted and sentenced to life in prison without parole. Prosecutors and investigators agreed that Thompson’s testimony was critical to the case against him. He has appealed his conviction.

Thompson was charged with five felony counts, including obstruction of justice and “accessory after-the-fact.” Thompson has pleaded not guilty. Authorities do not believe that Thompson was present when John Blauvelt murdered Cati Blauvelt. She faces 55 years in prison and has been released on bail. A judge will decide her fate.

Cati Blauvelt’s mother says she thinks of Cati’s violent death every day. And that it does not get easier for her. She told the jury that Cati was pure “sunshine.”