Kelly Cochran Murdered her Boyfriend, Allegedly Served his Remains at a Cookout, then Killed her Husband

15 May

In 2014 Kelly Cochran and her husband, Jason, killed a man with whom Kelly had been having an affair. Friends of the couple believe they may been served the man’s remains at a barbeque. In 2016 the guilt caught up with Kelly and she decided to murder Jason to ‘even the score’.

Who were Kelly and Jason Cochran?

Kelly and Jason Cochran, who grew up in Merrillville, Indiana, were childhood neighbors and high school sweethearts. Their deep affection for one another was so strong that after Kelly Cochran completed her high school education in 2002, they got married. As part of their commitment to each other, they made a solemn vow to kill anyone who might engage in infidelity with them.

After a decade of physically demanding work maintaining swimming pools, Jason Cochran's back eventually reached its breaking point. Despite his Kelly’s diligent efforts to cover the expenses, the mounting debts became overwhelming. In 2013, the couple decided to leave their predicament behind and relocated to Caspian, Michigan. They also held hope for the legalization of marijuana, which they believed would alleviate Jason's persistent pain.

Who was Christopher Regan?

Christopher Regan, aged 53, was a satisfied and hardworking individual who had managed to establish a comfortable life for himself through his employment at a factory in Iron River, Michigan. His job involved manufacturing components for Naval ships.

He had a loving relationship with his partner Terri O’Donnell until het met Kelly Cochran through work.

Kelly and Christopher developed a sexual relationship and kept it secret from both of their partners until October 14th, 2014. It was on this day that Christopher decided he wanted to stay with his partner Terri and end his affair. Distraught by this news, Kelly decided it was time to tell her husband about the affair and act upon their pact to kill.

Kelly and Jason Cochran Murder Christopher Regan

The next day, Christopher Regan had planned to spend the night with Cochran, unaware that she had been engaged in a heated argument with her husband about him the previous night.

Cochran invited Regan over and engaged in sexual activity with him while her husband fatally shot him in the head. The sound of a gunshot was heard by neighbors, followed by the noise of power tools.

According to Investigation Discovery, neighbors of the Cochrans claimed to have potentially been served human remains at a barbecue at their home shortly after Regan went missing. In the documentary, one of Jason's friends, who was interviewed, recounted consuming a burger that tasted peculiar without realizing at the time that it could have been made from human flesh.

Regan was reported missing by Terri O'Donnell ten days later, but by that time, the Cochrans had already disposed of his remains. As they abandoned his car on the outskirts of town, they overlooked a post-it note containing directions to their residence left on the dashboard. The police eventually discovered Regan’s car and were lead straight to the Cochrans by the note.

When the police visited Kelly and Jason Cochran, they observed that Kelly seemed completely at ease, while Jason appeared uncomfortable. Subsequently, the police conducted separate interviews with them.

Kelly confessed to having engaged in a romantic relationship with Regan but asserted that she and her husband had an arrangement of an open marriage. In spite of this, Jason displayed evident annoyance towards his wife's infidelity.

Despite the Cochrans successfully eliminating all traces of their crimes, resulting in the case going unsolved, their residence was searched by the FBI in March 2015. This prompted the frightened couple to flee to Hobart, Indiana.

Kelly Cochran Murders Jason Cochran

The murder of Christopher Regan went unsolved until Kelly Cochrane was arrested after the death of Jason Cochrane.

On February 20th, 2016, EMTs arrived at the Cochran residence on Mississippi Street, Hobart. They discovered Jason Cochran unresponsive, while Kelly reportedly exhibited disruptive behavior as they attempted to resuscitate him.

Unfortunately, the EMTs declared Jason Cochran deceased due to an overdose, unaware that Kelly had intentionally administered an excessive amount of heroin and then suffocated him.

In the following days, Cochran held a memorial service, expressing online that it was an incredibly difficult situation to cope with. Meanwhile, she began selling her belongings. Without notifying her relatives, she fled from Indiana on April 26th. However, when the Hobart Medical Examiner determined that Jason's cause of death was asphyxiation, Cochran became a fugitive.

Authorities pressed multiple charges against her, including murder, home invasion, disinterment and mutilation, concealing the death of an individual, lying to a police officer, and being an accessory to murder after the fact. Despite being a fugitive, Cochran strangely decided to maintain contact with investigators through text messages.

In her messages, she falsely claimed to be hiding on the West Coast, attempting to mislead the police. The investigators easily traced her location to Wingo, Kentucky, using her phone's tracking. U.S. Marshals apprehended her on April 29th. Eventually, Cochran disclosed the whereabouts of Regan's remains and provided information about the murder weapon to the authorities.

Kelly Cochran is Sentenced

During Kelly Cochran's trial, it came to light that she had contemplated murdering her husband, Jason, instead of Christopher Regan. She believed that Jason had taken away "the only good thing" she had in her life and expressed her ongoing hatred towards him.

Cochran openly admitted that her actions were driven by a desire for revenge, as she sought to even the score.

As a result of her conviction for Regan's death, Cochran was already serving a life sentence. In April 2018, she received an additional 65-year sentence for the murder of her husband, Jason Cochran.