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About nine years after a divorced father went missing in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, detectives detail the steps they took to apprehend the suspect, known as the “devil woman of Michigan,” in his brutal murder.
Christopher Regan’s disappearance in 2014 sent Iron River detectives down a rabbit hole that eventually led to the discovery of two murders committed by a “bored” woman.
In 2017, Kelly Cochran, Regan’s lover, was sentenced to life in prison for his murder. A year later, she was sentenced to 65 years in prison for the murder of her husband Jason Cochran.
“I was trying to do what I thought was right. You go to school, you go to college, you get married,” Kelly Cochran told “20/20” of the Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility in Ypsilanti, Michigan, in a new episode called “Where Monsters Hide” that aired Friday.
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In 2017 Kelly Cochran, Christopher Regan’s lover, was sentenced to life in prison for his murder. A year later, she was sentenced to 65 years in prison for the murder of her husband Jason Cochran. (Lake County Sheriff’s Office)
She continued, “I got bored of getting married. It was okay at first, but all I did was work.”
Iron River investigators were quickly able to identify Kelly and Jason Cochran, Regan’s colleague, as individuals interested in Regan’s disappearance, but it took a long time to gather enough evidence to press charges.
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Former Iron River police chief Laura Frizzo told “20/20” that Jason Cochran had a motive because he was Kelly’s husband and was “cheated on”. The couple had a “troubled” marriage and Kelly Cochran “led a single person life,” Frizzo said.
Investigators conducted a search of the Cochrans’ home and found blood spatter on the ceiling, a cracked door frame, and a diary entry from Jason Cochran suggesting a crime had taken place. Investigators later found that Kelly Cochran had murdered Regan, an Air Force veteran, in the home.
The Cochrans’ neighbors told police they heard the couple using power tools at night not long after Regan’s disappearance. The next day, they invited the neighborhood to a barbecue with lots of meat, ABC reported.
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“What if they really were those kind of people and actually killed the guy and then slaughtered him and invited us over for dinner?” neighbor David Saylor said in a police interview, according to ABC.
Private investigators were able to track down the Cochrans in Hobart, Indiana, nearly two years after Regan’s disappearance when Kelly Cochran called 911 to report her husband was not breathing.
An autopsy later revealed that Jason Cochran died of asphyxiation, prompting investigators to turn their attention to Kelly Cochran as a suspect in the murders of both men.
She later admitted to injecting her husband with heroin and smothering him.
Hobart Police Detective Jeremy Ogden described the various psychological tactics he used to get Kelly to admit to her crimes. The detective told “20/20” that after seeing her regularly visit a park where she sat by a certain tree, he decided to carve the phrase “CHRIS IS HERE” on the tree.
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Later that same night, Kelly first told Ogden that Regan had been killed, initially saying that Jason killed him and forced her to dismember his body. She also claimed in court that Jason was abusive.
“I know (Kelly) is capable of murder,” Ogden told “20/20.” “Everything I did with her, every interaction, every time was all non-custodial. And it had to be that way to get all the way to the end.”
Christopher Regan and his ex-girlfriend, Terri O’Donnell. (Research Discovery)
The convicted killer doubled down on those claims in her interview with “20/20,” saying that Jason tied her up while he killed Regan.
“With (Kelly) it was like ‘lie, lie, lie, truth. Lie, truth. Lie, lie, lie, truth. You have to figure it out,” Frizzo told “20/20.”
Kelly told authorities she had a pact with her husband that inspired the murders. If one spouse cheated, according to the alleged pact, that spouse would have to kill his lover or be killed by the other spouse, ABC reported.
Kelly pleaded not guilty in the Regan case, but a jury found her guilty on all charges after three hours of deliberation.
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Regan’s ex-girlfriend, Terri O’Donnell, previously told Fox News Digital that he was “just amazing” and “loved life.”
“He loved hiking and the outdoors… He was energetic and always wanted to do something new and learn more. He was constantly improving himself and going to school,” she said. “He even went back to college to become a better manager at his job.”
Audrey Conklin is a digital reporter for Fox News Digital and FOX Business. Email tips to [email protected] or on Twitter at @audpants.
