Where Monsters Hide (Rebroadcast)

Summary

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20/20 Podcast: “Where Monsters Hide” (Rebroadcast)

Original Airdate: August 1, 2026
Host: ABC News

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Overview

This gripping true crime episode investigates the disappearance and murder of Chris Reagan in Iron River, Michigan—a haunting case entangled in jealousy, betrayal, and a shocking “marriage pact” between spouses. The story unfolds over months of police work, personal sacrifice, and the ultimately devastating revelations about the couple at the center: Kelly and Jason Cochran. Combining first-person accounts, investigation twists, and chilling discoveries, this episode offers a deep dive into small-town darkness and the complex psychology of the people involved.

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Key Points & Discussion Breakdown

1. The Setting: Iron River and Chris Reagan’s Disappearance

• Small Town Texture
  • Iron River, MI: rural, isolated, population 3,000, “Yooper” culture ([02:09]-[03:29]).
  • Harsh winters, everyone knows everyone, suspicious of outsiders.
• Chris Reagan: A Newcomer
  • Former military, meticulous, moved to Iron River for love ([04:04]-[04:24]).
  • Job at Oldenburg Group; responsible, didn't miss work.
• The Disappearance (Oct 2014)
  • No call/no show triggers concern at work and from ex-girlfriend Terry O’Donnell ([05:21]-[06:24]).
  • Apartment shows signs of packing, no evidence of a rushed exit ([07:17]-[08:13]).
  • Missing person’s case initiated as suspicions grow.

“He had a list started, you know, of things he wanted to get ready for his move.”
— Chief Laura Frizzo ([08:04])

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2. Unraveling Relationships: Love Quadrangle, Jealousy, and Motive

• Multiple Affairs
  • Chris involved with Terry, Kelly Cochran (married), and another co-worker, Eric ([11:24]-[11:58]).
  • Kelly’s marriage described as troubled; both she and Jason involved with others ([16:42]-[17:51]).
• Investigation Focus
  • Detectives suspect foul play amid tangled relationships, possible jealousy as motive ([17:03]-[22:05]).
• Red Flags
  • Contradictory statements, odd behavior, and jealousy among all parties.
  • A critical clue: A post-it in Chris' car reveals directions to Kelly Cochran’s home ([09:43]-[10:19]).
  • Police find evidence but not enough for an arrest.

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3. The Cochrans Under Scrutiny: Evidence and Evading Justice

• Search Warrant Execution
  • Chief Frizzo, private investigators, and police search Cockran residence ([26:42]-[28:00]).
  • House described as creepy, arsenal of weapons found ([28:31]-[29:40]).
  • Possible blood spatter found painted over on ceiling ([30:00]-[32:08]).
• Suspect Flight
  • The day after the search, Kelly and Jason “skip town” ([31:17]-[32:25]).
• Tracking the Cochrans
  • Private investigators place a GPS tracker on their vehicle, following them to Hobart, Indiana ([35:14]-[36:47]).
• Notable Quote:
  • “We were hoping that they would go to where the body was.”
    — PI Jim McNeil ([35:34])

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4. The Breakthrough: Forensics, Deception, and Jason’s Death

• Police Coordination
  • DNA collected, psychological tactics employed to divide the couple ([37:09]-[39:56]).
• Jason Dies
  • Kelly calls 911: “Yeah, my husband's not breathing. His face is bleeding, barely. I don't know what's wrong. I need an ambulance right away.” ([40:18]).
  • Autopsy reveals signs of suffocation, arousing further suspicion ([48:12]-[48:45]).
• Chilling Evidence
  • Manuscript found called “Where Monsters Hide”—possible veiled confession ([34:08]-[35:14]).
• Community Rumors and Grimmer Allegations
  • Neighbors recall late-night construction, possible “barbecue” with human remains, though not substantiated ([76:01]-[77:04]).

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5. The Confession Game: Cat and Mouse with Kelly Cochran

• Psychological Tactics
  • Detective Jeremy Ogden builds rapport, strategizes to draw out confession ([50:56]-[52:07]).
  • Bizarre techniques: fake letter, tree carving (“Chris is here”) intended to spook Kelly ([53:18]-[55:34]).
• Kelly’s Shifting Stories
  • First admits Chris Reagan was killed, dismembered (“He downsized him”—[57:08]).
  • Claims Jason forced her under threat, paints herself as a victim ([57:23]-[58:01], [61:10]-[62:00]).
• "Marriage Pact" Revelation
  • Kelly alleges at trial: if either spouse cheats, the guilty party must kill the lover—or be killed ([64:44]-[65:11]).
• Notable Moment:
  • “She had titled it ‘Where Monsters Hide’... almost like he was writing about this situation.”
    — Chief Laura Frizzo ([34:08])

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6. Recovery of Chris Reagan’s Remains & Final Evidence

• Crime Scene and Remains
  • Kelly eventually leads detectives to Chris’s remains after initial deceit ([66:45]-[68:00]).
  • Caspian Pit burn barrel, forceps found at the house used to extract a bullet ([68:14]-[68:27]).
• Closure for Family
  • Chris’s son receives his father’s dog tags ([25:42]-[25:54]).
  • Emotional moment as skull and decisive forensic evidence are discovered ([68:57]-[69:12]).

“I finally found you…I just literally, like, said that to myself, you know?”
— Chief Laura Frizzo ([69:12])

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7. The Trial: Lies, Strategy, and Verdict

• Prosecution vs. Defense
  • Prosecution alleges partnership in murder; defense pivots to Jason acting alone ([70:08]-[71:06]).
    • "Bonded in blood" becomes prosecutorial refrain ([69:55], [73:35]).
• Kelly’s Testimony
  • Contradictions undercut her credibility: “It was like, lie, lie, lie, truth, lie, truth, lie, lie, lie, truth.”
    — Chief Laura Frizzo ([61:13], [58:15])
  • Kelly pleads not guilty, claims abuse and coercion ([71:13]-[72:06]).
• Jury Decision
  • Deliberated only three hours—returns guilty on all counts: first degree murder, aiding and abetting ([74:26]-[75:09]).
  • Sentenced to life in Michigan, plus 65 years for Jason Cochran’s murder in Indiana ([79:22]-[79:28]).
• Memorable Quote:
  • “She looked like the devil. Her eyes were blank.”
    — Terry O’Donnell ([71:30])

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8. Dark “Epilogue”: Allegations of Other Murders

• Serial Killer Rumors
  • Kelly’s brother alleges up to nine other victims ([77:38]).
  • Kelly tells her mother in a prison call: “I've always been like this.” ([78:24])
  • No physical evidence found to substantiate further murders, but investigators remain uneasy ([78:33]-[78:51]).
• Kelly’s Denials
  • To host: "No, I've never killed anybody." ([79:59])
  • Denies cannibalism rumors ([80:18]); continues to obfuscate.

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9. Human Aftermath and Unexpected New Beginning

• Lasting Impact
  • Chief Laura Frizzo, critical in solving the case, lost her position due to workplace conflicts ([81:38]-[81:57]).
  • Frizzo and Detective Ogden form a bond—now planning a life together in Michigan ([82:03]-[82:39]).
• Final Reflection
  • Terry O’Donnell seeks solace along Apple Blossom Trail, comforted by memories ([81:15]-[81:38]).

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Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• “From the outside, it honestly looks like a dark Hansel and Gretel kind of house.”
  — Terry O’Donnell ([00:35])
• “I was worried a little bit, just because I was the one that was kind of the thorn in their side.”
  — Chief Laura Frizzo on Cochrans fleeing ([32:35])
• “She says, please don’t mail it.”
  — Chief Laura Frizzo on Kelly’s reaction to the fake letter trap ([54:20])
• “He downsized him.”
  — Kelly Cochran’s euphemism for dismemberment ([57:08])
• “Kelly and Jason Cochran were bonded in blood. Chris Reagan was bathed in it.”
  — Prosecutor ([73:17])
• “There probably is not a punishment on this earth that could match what she did to Christopher.”
  — Terry O'Donnell ([81:15])

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Key Moments & Timestamps

| Timestamp | Event/Discussion | |-------------------|----------------------------------------------------------| | [05:21]-[06:24] | Chris Reagan reported missing | | [07:17]-[08:13] | Investigation of apartment shows no signs of foul play | | [09:43]-[10:19] | Post-it note clue found | | [26:42]-[28:00] | Execution of Cochran home search warrant; arsenal found | | [31:17]-[32:25] | Cochrans flee after search | | [40:18]-[47:15] | Jason Cochran’s suspicious death | | [53:08]-[55:34] | The “ghost letter” and tree carving tactics flourish | | [57:08] | Kelly’s first partial confession (“He downsized him”) | | [68:14]-[68:27] | Crime scene match: forceps used on Chris Reagan’s body | | [69:12] | Emotional moment as Chris's skull found | | [74:26]-[75:09] | Guilty verdict and sentencing | | [77:38] | Serial killer allegations emerge | | [82:03]-[82:39] | Frizzo and Ogden’s personal epilogue |

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Tone & Style

• The episode’s tone is dark, tense, and methodical, with moments of emotional candor, especially during interviews with Frizzo and O’Donnell.
• Police perspective is deeply empathetic to the victim but relentless in pursuit of justice.
• Many interviewees are blunt (sometimes darkly humorous), echoing the no-nonsense, small-town ethos.
• The episode ends on a surprisingly hopeful, almost cinematic, note with Frizzo and Ogden’s romance.

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Conclusion

“Where Monsters Hide” exemplifies 20/20’s hallmark blend of deeply researched narrative and chilling human drama. What begins as a small-town missing persons case evolves into a tangled web of psychological manipulation, deception, and horror. Through meticulous police work, community vigilance, and innovative investigative tactics, justice for Chris Reagan is finally realized—though chilling questions linger about the true scope of the Cochrans’ darkness.

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For listeners seeking an in-depth look at methodology, motives, and the ripple effects of criminal acts on a community and its investigators, this episode is an essential listen.

Transcript

[Narrator]

This show is sponsored by Murder in the Heartland, a podcast from I D. Murder in the Heartland explores real crimes across small town America, Towns that might look a lot like your own. Every week, uncover shocking stories of murder and betrayal. From a suspicious hunting accident to a college student who disappears after her shift at the local bar. Hear from investigators, witnesses, and family members as they share the chilling details behind each case. If you're interested in true crime with a small town twist, you might love this podcast. Listen to Murder in the Heartland wherever you get your podcasts.

[Terry O'Donnell]

From the outside, it honestly looks like a dark Hansel and Gretel kind of house.

[Interviewer]

Your dog okay?

[Jason Cochran]

What?

[Interviewer]

I mean, they're not friendly.

[Private Investigator]

As soon as you walk into the house, the hair stands up on the back of your neck. It's pretty creepy.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

It really was.

[Narrator/Host]

I've come to this remote part of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. It seems haunting, but maybe that's because this is where the mystery unfolds.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

There's more media attention to our missing person, Chris Reagan.

[Interviewer]

This doesn't look like Chris's apartment at all. It's all disheveled. He was always very neat. Everything was always put away, the suitcase out, start tracking.

[Narrator/Host]

And no signs of forced entry or chaos.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Absolutely not. Something happened to him.

[Terry O'Donnell]

I knew that in my heart, and I knew that in my gut he had another side to him.

[Narrator/Host]

So immediately, this is a lover's triangle.

[Interviewer]

How many guys were you actually seeing

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

at the same time?

[Interviewer]

My husband Eric and Chris.

[Terry O'Donnell]

Not a love triangle, but a love quadrangle.

[Interviewer]

Tell me something, you guys.

[Terry O'Donnell]

What happened to Chris Reagan?

[Narrator/Host]

That's the stuff of horror movies.

[Terry O'Donnell]

The Upper Peninsula is kind of its own little world.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

The Upper Peninsula is also known as the up. People are Yoopers.

Yoopers are unique people.

[Sergeant Cindy Barrett]

The Upper Peninsula is separated by the Mackinac Bridge from Lower Michigan.

[Narrator/Host]

It's in absolute rural, forested woodland and kind of terrifying in its isolation.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

We can get wind chill readings 30 below zero in the wintertime.

It looks like the Arctic sometimes, and, you know, you can kind of feel lost.

[Narrator/Host]

One town in the Upper Peninsula is the small town of Iron river, which was named because of the local mining.

[Co-worker/Team Leader]

Iron River, Michigan has a population of about 3,000 with one stoplight in their town.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

My name is Laura Frizzo, and I'm the former police chief of Iron river and also the first female police chief actually to serve in the entire Upper Peninsula. It was a lot of double takes when I first started with some of the old timers who were like, what's going on here? The people of Iron river are really good hearted people, accepting. But I think when someone new comes to the area, they're a little skeptical at first and they take their time to make sure that you're worthy of being included into their little circle.

[Narrator/Host]

One of those outsiders who came to live in iron river was 51 year old Chris Reagan.

[Terry O'Donnell]

We had to actually go up and buy him all new clothes, what he called his duper clothes, because he had city clothes.

[Narrator/Host]

Terry o' Donnell was an old flame of Chris Reagan's, and the two had recently rekindled their romance.

[Terry O'Donnell]

He decided that he was going to move to Iron river so that we could be closer together. It was a whirlwind. God, I was so in love with him. Christopher and I used to come down out Apple Blossom Trail and then walk around the river. We'd sit listening to the water, just enjoy time together.

[Narrator/Host]

So when Chris moved to Iron river, he got a job at a manufacturing company called the Oldenburger Group.

[Co-worker/Team Leader]

Chris was very meticulous about things. Probably one of our best team leaders that we had. He was actually holding people accountable.

[Narrator/Host]

Chris was former military and had a reputation as a reliable worker. So it came as a bit of a surprise when he didn't show up for his job. That was October 14th.

[Co-worker/Team Leader]

I sent a message to Chris, you know, we haven't heard from you. Is everything okay? Chris had missed two days. And one of my team leaders came forward and told me, laura, just so you know, Chris had applied for another position and he's moving to North Carolina.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

You know, if he was doing long hours for a pretty demanding company, then maybe he just said, enough of that.

[Co-worker/Team Leader]

After three days, no call, no show is termination.

[Narrator/Host]

Remarkably, two whole weeks had gone by and no one had heard from Chris. That's when Terry decides to go to the police. By this time, the two had broken up, but they remained close friends and talked regularly.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I saw this vehicle pull up and park in front of the police department. And I saw this woman get out of the vehicle and she was crying and she said that her friend was missing.

[Terry O'Donnell]

I was shaking. I had tears.

[Narrator/Host]

What was that interaction like when you first encountered Terry o'?

[Jason Cochran]

Donnell?

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

She was very upset. You know, clearly she knew something wasn't right because she knew him very well.

[Narrator/Host]

Chief Frizzo sends Sergeant Cindy Barrett to investigate. First stop, Chris Reagan's apartment.

[Sergeant Cindy Barrett]

Terry o' Donnell's parents are landlords to Chris Reagan, so Terry had access via key from her parents.

[Interviewer]

This doesn't look like Chris's apartment at all. It's all disheveled he was always very neat. Everything was always put away.

[Sergeant Cindy Barrett]

It was evident that he was in the process of packing up to move to his new job. There was packing boxes, and on the bed, there were suitcases.

[Interviewer]

Started tracking,

[Sergeant Cindy Barrett]

and there was papers there for his new job.

[Interviewer]

This is his paperwork to accept the position. It's not even sent yet. His calendar shows that he was going to resign on the 14th. He has the 23rd as his last day of work.

[Narrator/Host]

So not a guy who's running away.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Absolutely not.

[Narrator/Host]

And no signs of forced entry or chaos?

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Not at all. In fact, he had a list started, you know, things that he wanted to get ready for his move.

[Interviewer]

I said, he has everything that he needs to do to move.

[Sergeant Cindy Barrett]

All of his notes on the dining room table were legal pads with to do lists like, call the power company, shut the power up. It really started to bother me that something was very, very wrong.

[Jason Cochran]

Now, was this window left open?

[Interviewer]

The windows were left open.

[Sergeant Cindy Barrett]

It appeared that he had left the apartment with full intentions of returning.

[Terry O'Donnell]

Something happened to him. I knew that in my heart, and I knew that in my gut.

[Sergeant Cindy Barrett]

And I said, we're going to go out and we're going to check the car. And when we're done with that, I will enter Chris Reagan as a missing person in the national database.

[Narrator/Host]

From there, they went to the park and Ride, where Terry had seen Chris car abandoned for days.

[Terry O'Donnell]

Christopher's Hyundai Genesis, his vehicle was there, and that was his baby. He took such good care of it. And so it didn't make sense to me that it was at the park and Ride

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

when Sergeant Barrett went to take a look at the car. She found, you know, a couple things in the car, like his knee brace that he should have been wearing.

[Interviewer]

That. His knee brace?

[Kelly Cochran's Brother]

Yep.

[Interviewer]

Does he normally wear the knee brace?

[Jason Cochran]

Yep.

[Interviewer]

Okay.

[Narrator/Host]

And I understand in the car, there was an intriguing post it note.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Yeah. She found, like, a post it note that was flipped upside down on the passenger side. We didn't know at first what was written on it and what it would come to mean later.

[Terry O'Donnell]

Christopher always wrote things down on Post its, and the post it note had directions on it. And I told her that wherever those directions went to, that was the last place he was.

[Narrator/Host]

This is believed to be the last known video of Chris Reagan. He's caught on a surveillance camera at a gas station on the afternoon of October 14, 2014. Leading up the investigation into Reagan's disappearance is a new, inexperienced Chief of Police, Laura Frizzo.

[Prosecutor]

She is a leader in a profession in the Upper Peninsula, where There aren't a lot of female leaders.

[Narrator/Host]

How many people on the force for full time.

[Terry O'Donnell]

She truly cared and she truly wanted to solve this.

[Narrator/Host]

As Chief Frizzo investigates Chris Reagan's disappearance, she discovers that he had dated multiple women in his short time in Iron River. And some of those relationships overlapped. I dated Chris Regan back in 2013 from around May till the end of October for about six months. He would always send me a text weekly. He was very suave, very sweet, charismatic. Just kind of knew how to make you feel good.

[Terry O'Donnell]

As far as Terry o' Donnell knew, she thought that she was in an exclusive relationship with Chris. And this behavior came as a real shock to her.

I asked him why, you know, he was doing that, and he said, well, you're going to be gone to Europe for three weeks. What happens if I get lonely? So sadly to say, I broke it off with him.

[Narrator/Host]

When Chief Rizzo digs deeper into Chris life, she discovers another woman he'd been dating, a 33 year old co worker by the name of Kelly Cochran.

[Interviewer]

Neither one of us were all in. It was never going to be because I was married.

[Narrator/Host]

She was an employee at Oldenburg. Chris was actually involved in her hiring. Kelly was also new to town and I think they bonded over that being two city folk in this small town.

[Interviewer]

I would go over to Chris's and usually cook and then, I mean, we were intimate. And then usually I would leave.

[Narrator/Host]

That post it note found inside Chris's car at this parking ride could have led to any one of his girlfriend's homes. Turns out it was Kelly Cochran's.

[Sergeant Cindy Barrett]

Chief Rizwe had told me to go and interview Kelly Cochran to see if she had any information as to the whereabouts of Chris Reagan. And man came out. So I said, are you Kelly Cochran's husband? And he said yes. I said, is Kelly home? And he says, no, Kelly's not home. I don't know where she is. And shortly thereafter, this woman comes out. I asked her if she was Kelly. She said, yes, I'm Kelly. It's not unusual for a husband or a wife to say, no, he's not here. That is very common. I was actually surprised she came out. So I says, your husband aware of your relationship with Chris Reagan? She says, oh, yes, he's fine with it. Jason Cochran is standing there just stoically, not saying a word, just like a statue, no emotion. She says, I figured Chris left for North Carolina without saying goodbye to me. So I told her, I said we were wondering why the car is at the park and Ride. And Kelly Cochran said, in the past tense, he loved that car.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

And Sergeant Barrett called me afterwards and said, I found that to be very chilling and odd that she said past tense, he loved that car.

[Narrator/Host]

Because of her tiny department's limited resources, Chief Frizzo asks for help from the Michigan State Police. They sent two detectives who questioned the Cochrans the very next day.

[Jason Cochran]

And I'll tell you guys in advance. I see a therapist for high anxiety.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I'm listening to Jason Cochran's interview with the detective. He immediately. I mean, there's no questions asked even yet. And he's like, I just want to let you know that I haven't been doing too well lately.

[Jason Cochran]

I actually was institutionalized a little over a month ago, so.

[Interviewer]

Okay.

[Jason Cochran]

You know, I seem like I'm getting bombed up. I do see a therapist for it. Lost a close friend, and I've been depressed ever since.

[Interviewer]

Do you think that's what caused all your issues?

[Jason Cochran]

A huge part of it, yeah. And don't get me wrong. Knowing that my marriage fell apart.

[Interviewer]

So you were very much aware of what Kelly was doing?

[Jason Cochran]

I either had to accept it or to let her go. So I decided that I could at least accept it for a little while and see if it's, you know, what she really wanted was to not be with me. Then I was gonna let her go.

[Interviewer]

Kelly, right? Yes. K, E, L, L, Y.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

When Kelly came in for her interview, the one thing I noticed about her right out of the gate was her ability to control her body language.

[Interviewer]

Tell us everything you know about Chris. We actually got pretty close in the last four months. Okay. Like a best friend. Did you have an intimate relationship? Yes, we did. Okay. And obviously your husband.

[Jason Cochran]

Nose.

[Interviewer]

You know, she was.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Leaned forward, she had eye contact, and her voice was calm and collected the whole time.

[Interviewer]

When is the last time you saw Chris? I would say between the 12th and the 15th. Was last time I saw him. Where did you see him? I seen him at his apartment, I think. Was Jason upset about that?

[Jason Cochran]

No.

[Interviewer]

Kelly, should we be looking at Jason? I don't see why you would. Well, I'll tell you why. Because husbands get jealous. I understand that.

[Jason Cochran]

Who do you think would have hurt Chris?

[Interviewer]

I don't think anybody would hurt him. I would like to know what happened as well. That's why I'm willing to be here. I'm a good person.

[Narrator/Host]

Despite the love triangle between the Cochrans and Chris Reagan, there's still no evidence of any crime being committed. But Chief Frizzo still suspects that Reagan's disappearance Might be the result of foul play.

Frizzo and her small team continued pressing on, and they quickly learn that Kelly also had multiple relationships, including a gentleman who also worked at the Oldenburg Group. Kelly was dating another employee there by the name of Eric Erickson.

[Co-worker/Team Leader]

Eric's supervisor was Chris Regan.

[Terry O'Donnell]

So now police are wondering, could Eric have been upset enough to have harmed Chris?

[Interviewer]

How would you feel about taking a polygraph test just to prove that you didn't have anything to do with Chris's parent?

[Terry O'Donnell]

As Chief Laura Frizzo is investigating the disappearance of Chris Reagan, she discovers evidence of not a loved one triangle, but a love quadrangle. Even though Kelly Cochran is married to Jason, she is having an affair with Chris and another co worker, Eric Erickson.

[Co-worker/Team Leader]

Eric Erickson was hired as military assembler. Eric was a good employee. He showed up. He was dependable.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Eric was a suspect. Could he have done something to Chris because he was angry and jealous and outrage. So it was important to eliminate him. There was a point, with the participation of the Michigan State Police detectives, where I think they wanted to take more of a lead in the case and handle it.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

There was no warning. It was just basically like, hey, Laura said, they want to talk to you. And the next thing I know, they're coming at night, pulling up in my driveway, telling me, get in the car.

[Interviewer]

Thanks for coming. Did you also just got done at work? Yeah, yeah.

[Jason Cochran]

She wanted me to go out with her a couple times, like at night. I think for me, it was kind of fun, you know, at first, whatever. I had moved back here and I didn't know anybody. And having somebody give me some attention was like, I liked it.

[Interviewer]

Right.

[Jason Cochran]

This too. I still have the full text mess.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

I said, yeah, here, take a look at my phone. This is our conversations that we've had.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

When I looked at his conversations with Kelly, there was a point in time where he got very irritated with her. And it was the week before Chris went missing.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

There was a time where we went down to the lake and we were going to have just a couple beers while her phone was going off.

[Jason Cochran]

Right.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

And I'm like, you know, somebody's really trying to get ahold of you. Who is it? And she said that it's Chris, you

[Narrator/Host]

know, so maybe he was the jealous lover.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Yes. And I did think that it could happen.

[Narrator/Host]

The next step for Erickson, a polygraph or a so called lie detector test.

[Interviewer]

How would you feel about taking a polygraph test just to prove that you didn't have anything to do with Chris disappearance?

[Jason Cochran]

Yep. I told Him. I would do that, too.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I scheduled a polygraph for him. We went over everything.

[Jason Cochran]

Yeah, I totally. I totally understand that.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

All of a sudden, the door goes click in walks in, you know, the officer, and he goes, you passed. And I was like, I did so.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

And because of the alibi that he had did check out, I was able to put him to the side and focus more on the Cochrans as the suspects.

[Narrator/Host]

So as you're doing your sort of criminal profiles, what made Jason a potential suspect, in your mind?

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Jason really had motive. You know, he was the husband who was being cheated on.

[Jason Cochran]

Garner, which has kind of been on rocky roads for a little while.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

The story that I had gotten from Kelly was that they were separated, however, still living under the same roof.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

What I came to learn about this marriage was that it had been in trouble for a while. Kelly, you know, was living a life of a single person. She was constantly running around with different men.

[Jason Cochran]

There were times when she came home about 1:30, didn't even tell me where she was at. And I didn't really want to know. I hate to say it.

[Interviewer]

You kind of understand why you're here.

[Jason Cochran]

Yeah, I think so. You know, I mean, there's somebody that's missing. I'm gonna guess that I'm probably the jailer's hospital.

[Narrator/Host]

As police start going through Jason's text messages, they seem to reveal how Jason really feels about being cheated on. He doesn't seem happy at all. Texting her, I cannot take it. And you promised me you would stop. Was that a lie?

[Terry O'Donnell]

Also,

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

it wasn't long before Chris went missing. Jason found himself down by Chris's apartment and telling, don't go to those apartments again. You're a married woman.

[Narrator/Host]

The guy in the cast says, I was not the only guy trying to date you. Please don't go back to those apartments. You are married.

[Interviewer]

Your husband, did he confront you about the time when he said he was on the walk and he saw your truck parked by Chris's apartment? He had mentioned to you. What did he say? He had seen my truck there.

[Narrator/Host]

Which sounds almost like stalking behavior.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Right? So I'm thinking, okay, he's now put himself in a position where he's made contact with Chris Regan. I thought, you know, maybe he snapped.

[Kelly Cochran's Brother]

Things had boiled over, and Jason needed to go and get some help. Jason's admission to the mental Hospital was two days after Mr. Regan went missing.

[Terry O'Donnell]

Chief Frizzo now has some serious suspicion that Jason Cochran's got something to do with Chris Reagan's disappearance.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

It started to get close to the holidays. Thanksgiving was approaching.

[Narrator/Host]

And then out of the blue, Chief Frizzo gets a phone call that takes her by complete surprise.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

And when I picked up the phone, the voice on the other end said, hi, this is Chris Reagan. And I almost dropped the phone said that. Where have you been? Hey, it's Ryan Reynolds here for Mint Mobile. Now, I was looking for fun ways to tell you that Mint's offer of unlimited Premium Wireless for $15 a month is back.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

So I thought it would be fun

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

if we made $15 bills, but it turns out that's very illegal.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

So there goes my big idea for the commercial.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Give it a [e-mail] Switch upfront payment

[Narrator/Host]

of $45 for three months, $90 for six months, or $180 for a 12 month plan. Required $15 per month for equivalent to taxes and fees. Extra initial plan term only greater than 50 gigabytes. Me slow when network is busy.

[Terry O'Donnell]

See terms.

[Sponsor/Advertisement Voice]

This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever think about switching insurance companies to see if you could save some cash? Progressive makes it easy to see if you could save when you bundle your home in auto policies. Try [e-mail] Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states.

[Narrator/Host]

Winter is coming to the Upper Peninsula and Chris Reagan is still missing. The investigation into his disappearance looks like it's growing cold, too. But Iron River Police Chief Laura Frizzo remains convinced that Reagan was the victim of foul play. You thought maybe he's been murdered?

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Yeah, I just thought, something's wrong.

[Terry O'Donnell]

It seemed like everything was a dead end. I would stop in and check with Laura and just ask her how things are going. And then she'd say, I was thinking about you.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

Laura was very dedicated to the case. She knew that Chris had sons who wanted closure and she wanted to be able to get that closure for them.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I was in the office and I got a phone call. And when I picked up the phone, the voice on the other end said, hi, this is Chris Reagan. And I almost dropped the phone because I thought, well, where have you been? And he said, junior, this is his son. And it was really sad for me to hear his voice. It was even harder for me meeting him in person.

[Narrator/Host]

Chris Jr. Is on his way to Iron river with his brother to clean out their father's apartment.

The first time I went to Iron

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

river to cleaning out his apartment and

[Narrator/Host]

stuff like that was not fun.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I didn't know what to do or

[Narrator/Host]

like, where to start.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

It just was heartbreaking. They were young, they were lost, they didn't know what to do, where to go.

[Narrator/Host]

She knew that Chris was a veteran and that his military service was something he was really proud of. So she wanted to make sure that his son got his dog tags which they recovered from his apartment.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I went to hand them to him and he told me, I think you should just keep them with me. You. I carried those dog tags in my pocket every day.

[Terry O'Donnell]

This is a complicated case and the Iron River Police Department is small, just four people. And as a result of that, people offered their help.

[Private Investigator Jim McNeil]

So you think these profile questions are pretty good.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Jim McNeil and Molly Barron work together as private investigators. And you know, we got together after being introduced by a high school friend of mine, was like a mutual friend.

[Private Investigator Jim McNeil]

I feel that it's a tight community where everybody seems to know each other and especially if you have a missing person that's concerning to the community.

[Private Investigator]

Because of where we're from, we just don't have missing people like that. We're not gonna not do anything when somebody is missing.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

It was at this point where the prosecutor was ready to sign the search warrant for the Cochran residence. So Molly and Jim show up at my office and I'm like, oh, well, as a matter of fact, I said I'm going to be doing a search warrant there tomorrow.

[Narrator/Host]

On March 16, 2015, Chief Frizzo goes to the Cochrans house with the long awaited search warrant accompanied by those two private investigators.

[Interviewer]

Hi. Here's my little crazy dog.

[Private Investigator]

The dogs were just going crazy in there, like just barking, barking, barking.

[Interviewer]

Skip, two dogs. Okay. Are they mean? They're not friendly.

[Private Investigator]

We were in the home and Kelly's. This home is pretty creepy.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

It really was.

[Interviewer]

Stop. And what I have, Kelly, is I have a search warrant.

[Private Investigator Jim McNeil]

I think Molly and I brought, you know, a lot of experience there to her to assist her with a search warrant.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I've never worked with a PI like that before. That was my first experience.

[Narrator/Host]

This is a little unorthodox.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

It is. And I was kind of concerned about it when it first happened because I'm kind of a control freak and I didn't want anyone messing around. But it actually worked out to our advantage.

[Interviewer]

Hi, Jason. How you doing?

[Jason Cochran]

I'm hanging in there. How are you?

[Interviewer]

Okay.

[Private Investigator Jim McNeil]

One of the first things you want to be very careful of is weapons. Do you have any weapons in the home?

[Interviewer]

Not on them, but I wouldn't have weapons in the house. I've got a.22 under there. Should be able to reach right in and get it.

[Private Investigator Jim McNeil]

And you immediately go to these weapons and secure them.

[Interviewer]

Central 200 were secure.

[Private Investigator]

And they had all kinds of. Of weapons that were, like, all over the place. But that's not illegal.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

You know, Jason had a fetish with knives, swords, things like that. And he had a lot of them that were found and collected during the search warrant.

[Terry O'Donnell]

It was the kind of arsenal you see in a movie.

[Private Investigator Jim McNeil]

He had swords, crossbows everywhere you go. And at home, you can put your hands on something tangible and use it as a weapon. That was a very eerie feeling.

[Interviewer]

Do you want a jacket or something?

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Typically, you don't allow the residents to stay in the house. They're gonna have to leave.

[Interviewer]

You guys aren't gonna turn the computer off, are you? No.

[Jason Cochran]

Okay.

[Interviewer]

Is there something on there you don't wanna. No, no. He's working on something. Okay.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

It happened to be one of the coldest mornings of the winter. It was like, zero.

[Private Investigator]

As soon as you walk into the home, it. There's like a punch hole of some

[911 Operator]

sort through the door.

[Private Investigator]

And the door frame was awry. It was cracked or something.

[Private Investigator Jim McNeil]

At that point, Laura calls the crime lab. Hey, let's get the crime lab here. And we're standing there for quite a while waiting for that crime lab.

[Private Investigator]

So we're just standing there waiting.

[Interviewer]

And I looked up the tireless one stealing. Is that what you said? Yeah. Painted up.

[Private Investigator]

And something caught my eye, and I looked at it again, and I kind of stepped to the side and I looked at it again. The ceiling was white, but there was these certain spots up there. So I finally said something to Jim, and then Jim looked up and looked at it, and immediately was like, ooh.

[Narrator/Host]

To the private investigators, those spots on the ceiling look suspiciously like painted over blood.

[Private Investigator]

It's like a splatter pattern.

[Jason Cochran]

And she'd say, yeah, we've done remodeling and replaced some ceiling tiles that probably where the cast off is,

[Interviewer]

it could have happened right here.

[Narrator/Host]

It's already dark by the time the crime lab unit gets there.

[Interviewer]

Tell me something, you guys.

[Jason Cochran]

Okay, well, I'm gonna step in here. We got a positive reaction with the luminol on the ceiling here.

[Narrator/Host]

They bring in luminol, which is a chemical that detects the presence of blood right here.

[Interviewer]

And then there was something over here in this general area.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

They did get a positive reaction from that area above the doorway where it looked like something happened right under the door and kind of spread as it went back on the ceiling.

[Interviewer]

And they said that they got a

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

positive reaction from that.

[Interviewer]

I'm thrilled.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I'm thrilled.

[Interviewer]

I'm sorry.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

We had finished the search WARRANT Approximately like 10 o' clock at night. So it's late.

[Terry O'Donnell]

Investigators think that they have uncovered a gold mine of evidence against the Cochrans until something shocking happens. The next day.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I got a phone call from one of the neighbors in the morning and said, I just want to let you know that they totally loaded up their truck and skipped town.

[Terry O'Donnell]

The Cochrans have disappeared.

[Jason Cochran]

Chief's here.

[Interviewer]

Tell me something, you guys. We found a couple areas of interest. Excellent.

[Narrator/Host]

When investigators get the warrant to search the Cochrans home, they find a litany of disturbing items, including battle axes, crossbows, daggers and knives, a shotgun, a.22 caliber pistol. But more important than that is what appears to be blood spatter.

[Jason Cochran]

We got a positive reaction with the luminolo.

[Interviewer]

You're telling me that's blood, right? We haven't confirmed it yet.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

It was looking pretty good that they were going to get some positive results back.

[Terry O'Donnell]

At this point in the investigation, Chief Frizzo feels like she's got a lot of evidence on the Cochrans until the very next morning, she gets a call from one of the neighbors.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

And that neighbor calls in the morning and said, I just want to let you know that they totally loaded up their truck and skipped town. So I knew this was happening.

[Narrator/Host]

What was your reaction?

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I was worried a little bit, just because I was the one that was kind of the thorn in their side. And so I wanted to be sure they weren't gonna, you know, look for me or come over and find me.

[Narrator/Host]

Todd and David Saylor, the neighbors who reported the Cochrans missing, are brought in for questioning. They tell police about another very interesting detail they say they observed around the time of Chris Reagan's disappearance.

According to David, the Cochran started renovating their house, but not during the day. He could hear them in their basement using power tools for multiple nights.

[Interviewer]

You guys had heard them using these sanding tools and stuff, and you figured that was when.

[Jason Cochran]

Right around October. Sanding away. Just sanding and sanding saw.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

And they were doing it at odd times.

[Jason Cochran]

You're on like 2, 3 in the morning. You heard them all night.

[Narrator/Host]

And so what went through your mind when you heard that?

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

The worst thing imaginable. And I thought, you know, I can't. That can't be. But at the same time, with what they're telling me, it makes sense.

[Narrator/Host]

That's the stuff that. Of horror movies.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Yeah.

[Narrator/Host]

Also seemingly out of a horror movie. A chilling discovery Chief Frizzo later makes inside the Cochran's Basement. A journal written by Jason, and he

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

had titled it Where Monsters Hide. Then he goes on to talking about being a hunter and how the hunter hunts the prey and feels this tingle through their body. And it. It's kind of eerie, almost like he was writing about this situation.

[Narrator/Host]

It's almost like a thinly veiled confession.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Yes. It just again pointed in the direction of definitely this couple had something to do with his disappearance. And definitely Jason could have snapped.

[Narrator/Host]

Chief Frizzo is sure that the lab results from those blood samples taken from the house will prove that that Chris was brutally murdered there. But she's in for a bitter disappointment

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

when they called me and said, you know, we didn't get anything. They weren't good samples or had been treated with chemicals or whatever the case may be. And I remember just being so upset about that, you know, I was mentally drained a lot.

[Narrator/Host]

With her main suspects now gone into the wind, the case seems to have hit a dead end. But then there's a break. It turns out that on the night before the Cochrans left town, those private investigators had put a tracking device on the Cochrans truck, which is legal for PIs to do in the state of Michigan. What made you put the GPS tracker on?

[Private Investigator Jim McNeil]

Well, we were hoping that they would go to where the body was.

[Private Investigator]

That's one of the most dangerous moments in the whole investigation, I feel, is deploying the GPS unit because of the risk of danger.

[Narrator/Host]

What does that danger look like? What does that feel like?

[Private Investigator]

Somebody coming out with the shotgun and shooting us on the spot.

[Private Investigator Jim McNeil]

Okay, you ready?

[Local Resident/Commentator]

Yeah.

[Private Investigator Jim McNeil]

Right next to that spare tire is the back frame of the vehicle. And as I get closer, it just sucked it right out of my hand. And you know, you hear the loud bang. It's an exciting moment. You know, you can feel your heart beating through your chest. There's a lot of things that could go wrong at that moment in time.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I Talked to Jim McNeil and he said, we put a GPS device on the truck and I need to tell you that I immediately did a search warrant for their GPS information so that we knew where the Cochrans were and what was going on.

[Private Investigator]

We monitored the GPS movement all through exiting the upper peninsula of Michigan, through the state of Wisconsin, the top part of Illinois there in Indiana. And then they ended up nearby within the Hobart area.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

And sure enough, you know, we located them. They were back at Kelly's parents house in Hobart.

[Terry O'Donnell]

Chief Frizzo wants to get DNA samples from Kelly and Jason Cochran, but they're no longer in her jurisdiction, so she Contacts the Lake County Sheriff's Department in Indiana.

[911 Operator]

When I spoke with her, we made a connection on the phone. She gave me all the reasons that she believed that this was a criminal case. And, yeah, I believed her. We told Jason that we had a search warrant for his DNA and we needed to transport him to the Hobart Police Department. He did not say a word the entire time. He was just sitting in the back of the car, shaking and sweating and, like, wringing his hands together.

[Terry O'Donnell]

He's sitting in a room waiting to give his DNA swab. And then he gets the surprise of a lifetime.

[Interviewer]

Jason, how are you doing?

[Jason Cochran]

I'm doing good.

[Interviewer]

Funny seeing me in Indiana, huh?

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Looked up at me, and his face just started to turn red immediately. That was a shock to his system, I'm sure. And my whole plan was to try and give him the opportunity to be the victim and to tell me what happened to Chris.

[Interviewer]

You were begging me. Begging. Your wife just found you cheated on you. Do you remember telling her, if you ever loved me, you'd act like my wife? It says right in your messages, don't go back to those apartments. You're a married woman. Do you remember saying that?

[Jason Cochran]

Okay.

[Interviewer]

Do you remember saying that?

[Jason Cochran]

I don't really feel like answering any questions after. I feel like you violated my constitutional rights, and I want a lawyer.

[Interviewer]

Awesome.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Come in and get your DNA in the meantime. Actually, Kelly is just calling. She knows something's up. She's calling Jason's phone over and over again.

[911 Operator]

When Kelly Cochran saw Laura Frizzo, you could tell that seemed to be her nemesis.

[Interviewer]

So Jason was here for quite a while. And it took a while, but Jason told us to stop. The problem with you, Kelly, is that, you know, I've taught you in so many lies that I'm trying to give you an opportunity now to just say, hey, you know, I up. I am asking for a lawyer. Calm down with the question, okay? I will find you in the DNA. I told you. Okay, let's get this done.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

So as I started to leave the room to get the technicians to take her DNA, she said, where's my husband?

[Interviewer]

Where's my husband?

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

And I just kind of looked back at her because I had kind of fed her a line that, you know, Jason's already told us everything. We already know what happened.

[Narrator/Host]

What Laura affected effectively does is create distrust between the couple. And come February of 2016, that distrust is going to implode the Cochran Household.

[Jason Cochran]

Way County911Operator 17.

[Terry O'Donnell]

A 911 call from Kelly Cochran comes in that could unravel the mystery of what happened to Chris Reagan.

[Interviewer]

Yeah, my husband's not breathing. His face report as well. He's leaving. Barely. I don't know what's wrong. I need an ambiance right away.

[Narrator/Host]

Here we have one of the most sensational murders, but very few people have actually heard about this case. Some really heinous and atrocious crimes.

So what made you call the FBI?

[Walt Ammerman]

I found the flyer on Chris Regan being missing on this call.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

My instincts were just yelling at me that something's not right with this scene.

[Narrator/Host]

What makes the Caspian Pit such an excellent place to hide evidence?

[Jason Cochran]

A burn barrel was actually found by the divers just offshore here.

[Narrator/Host]

And back in these woods, an even more important discovery.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I'm trying to figure out what's the best way to get somebody to tell you a secret that only they know.

[Jason Cochran]

I told you before, you can be a witness, you can be a suspect.

[Narrator/Host]

It's almost like the two of them were having a chess game.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Absolutely.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Yeah, I think she wanted to play the game.

[Narrator/Host]

You were basically having to convince Kelly that her dead husband was sending a message from beyond the grave.

[Jason Cochran]

What's up?

[Interviewer]

You believe?

[Jason Cochran]

I'm not sure.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I'm not sure with you.

[Terry O'Donnell]

And the reason this case is so engaging is the amount of police video that's available. It's amazing.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

The Kelly Cochran case, just the biggest case we've had maybe ever with her.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

It was like, lie, lie, lie, truth, lie, truth, lie, lie, lie, truth. You gotta figure it out.

[Private Investigator]

The end of 2014. There was a missing man in the Iron river area. He wasn't found.

[Narrator/Host]

Chris Reagan is missing. And it is a mystery. Police chief Laura Frizzo discovers that Reagan is romantically tied to a married co worker, Kelly Cochran. She and her husband Jason are brought in for questioning.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Jason really had motive. You know, he was the husband who was being cheated on.

[Narrator/Host]

But as soon as he's in front of police, he falls apart. He's shaking, he's fumbling over his words.

[Jason Cochran]

I actually was institutionalized a little over a month ago. Where I get, I guess, really flustered in that. So. Okay.

[Narrator/Host]

When Laura and her team search the Cochrans home, they find a litany of weapons, from battle axes to shotguns. They find this blood spatter. And they find a manuscript written by Jason called Where Monsters Hide. The manuscript is this essentially fantasy driven tale of a overlooked man. And it has various accounts of him and his wife killing people and includes one that almost perfectly mirrors what happened with Chris Regan.

[Terry O'Donnell]

So at this point, investigators think that they have uncovered a Gold mine of evidence against the Cochrans. Until something shocking happens the next day. The Cochrans have now disappeared.

[Narrator/Host]

When Jason and Kelly Cochran fled their home in Michigan's Upper Peninsula back In March of 2015, private investigators were already tracking their movements using a hidden GPS device. The final destination, Their hometown of Hobert, Indiana.

[Interviewer]

Kelly and Jason were neighbors.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

They lived next door to each other all their lives.

[Interviewer]

I was trying to do what I thought was the right thing. You go to school, you go to college, you get married.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Kelly wore the pants in the family,

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

so whatever she wanted, Jason did.

[Interviewer]

I got bored from getting married. It was okay in the start, but, like, all I did was work.

[Sergeant Cindy Barrett]

She was wanting to help get their business, you know, up and running and make more money.

[Narrator/Host]

Even though the Cochrans are now out of her jurisdiction, Chief Frizzo continues to investigate Chris Reagan's disappearance. She's now focused on a place known as the Caspian Pit. She enlists the help of a former police investigator, Michael Nyger. What makes the Caspian Pit such an excellent place to hide evidence?

[Jason Cochran]

Well, it's. It's deep, and also it's within a

[Local Resident/Commentator]

couple hundred meters of where the Cochrans

[Jason Cochran]

lived and be very easy to get to in the dark and drop something.

[Narrator/Host]

Were you able to dredge up a burn barrel? Was that here?

[Local Resident/Commentator]

Yes. A burn barrel was actually found by

[Jason Cochran]

the divers just offshore here.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

There was a clothesline attached to this burn barrel with a cement block to it to weight it down. We found cement blocks in the backyard at Cochrane's. And the actual clothesline, which was missing,

[Local Resident/Commentator]

I think the implication was that perhaps Kelly and Jason were burning Christmas body, or parts of it at least.

I was out in my garage and, what in the heck's that smell?

[Jason Cochran]

And I walked across the street here, and she came running out of her

[Local Resident/Commentator]

yard and met me in the middle of the street. And I said, what the hell are you burning? And she said, I'm burning some brush out there. I said, look, I lived up here my whole life, and I never smelled nothing like that.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

The Cochrans had a fire pit, and there was a burn barrel that had been there. Once we sifted through that firepadache, we found a saw blade. We found the components to a pair of jeans, which was quite significant. We felt confident that this was likely their burn barrel. However, there was nothing in it, obviously. I mean, it was open in the pit, and anything that was in it would have washed out. Why did you need to get rid of it? So that was my validation, anyway, that we were on the right track.

[Narrator/Host]

But Then, In February of 2016, back in Hobert, Indiana, there's a truly shocking development that's about to upend the entire case. A 911 call coming from the house where the Cochrans are living.

[Jason Cochran]

Lake County 911 Operator 17.

[Interviewer]

My husband, his face is, like, 12. He's bleeding, barely. I don't know what's wrong. He's throwing up. I need an ambulance right away.

[Narrator/Host]

Kelly calls 911.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Kelly calls 911 and says, you know, I need the ambulance here. My husband's barely breathing.

[Interviewer]

You said he's breathing.

[Jason Cochran]

Difficulty breathing, really.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

On this call, my instincts were just yelling at me that something's not right with this scene. She seemed to kind of conveniently get in her way a lot, and she just didn't seem to have the proper reaction to finding her husband, you know, in cardiac arrest.

[Interviewer]

I'm panicking, like I'm trying to, you know, be of some use. As much as I didn't want him in my life, I didn't want him dead.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Jason Cochran, unfortunately was pronounced dead in the emergency room at St. Mary's

[Narrator/Host]

after Jason died, Kelly reached out to his friend Walt to let him know that Jason had passed, and Walt was immediately concerned. Kelly's tone was very strange. Everything about it felt abrupt and staged. And with encouragement from his wife, Walt called the FBI.

So what made you call the FBI?

[Walt Ammerman]

I found the flyer on Chris Regan being missing, and it had two numbers on there. The Iron River Police and the FBI. So I figured somebody should know that Jason's dead.

[Narrator/Host]

Do you remember what you told the FBI?

[Walt Ammerman]

I told them that I have some friends that lived in the U.P. they told me they're suspects, and one of them died Saturday.

[Narrator/Host]

The FBI routes the call to the proper jurisdiction, and it lands on the desk of Hobart Detective Sergeant Jeremy Ogden.

[911 Operator]

Jeremy Ogden had a reputation as an amazing investigator. Jeremy was known as a master interviewer.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I've never received a call like that before. I knew that I needed to make sure that Jason wasn't being taken to a funeral home rather than going for an autopsy.

[Narrator/Host]

It's not every day that a detective attends an autopsy. And so what did you learn in that particular one?

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I learned that, you know, Jason had petechial hemorrhaging around his eyes, within the whites of his pupils.

[Narrator/Host]

And what does that point to?

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Pressure and suffocation.

[Narrator/Host]

The autopsy results lead Ogden to take a deep dive into Kelly Cochran's background and Chris Reagan's disappearance. So he connects with Chief Laura Frizzo

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

from Iron river and then ultimately Laura sent me all of the documents and the videos immediately.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I knew that this was going to work out well because he was on the same page. His thoughts, his words. It was like, oh, my gosh, somebody else gets it. He gets it. He's thinking like I do. And that. That's rare.

[Narrator/Host]

What follows is a cat and mouse game between Detective Ogden and Kelly Cochran.

[Jason Cochran]

I just wish me to say something I didn't do. I didn't say you did anything.

[Narrator/Host]

As Ogden hatches a truly bizarre scheme to get Kelly to open up about what really happened to Chris Reagan, he

[Terry O'Donnell]

decides to make a carving on the tree that will really freak her out when she sees it.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I thought maybe she would see it as a sign from the dead or maybe even something supernatural.

[Sponsor/Advertisement Voice]

This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever think about switching insurance companies to see if you could save some cash? Progressive makes it easy to see if you could save when you bundle your home in auto policies. Try [e-mail], progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states. This show is sponsored by Progressive Insurance. Insurance isn't one size fits all. That's why drivers have enjoyed Progressive's name your price tool for years. Now, with the name your price tool, you tell them what you want to pay and they'll show you options that fit your budget. So whether you're picking out your first policy or just looking for something that works better for you and your family, they make it easy to see your options. Visit progressive.com to find a rate that works for you with the name your price tool. Progressive Casualty Insurance company and affiliates. Price and coverage match limited by state law.

[Narrator/Host]

At this point, Jeremy Ogden is now leading the investigation into the Cochrans.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I'm running the case and I'm doing all the things that I think are necessary.

[Narrator/Host]

Detective Ogden has what will be the first of many interrogations with Kelly Cochran at the Hobert police station following her husband Jason's death.

[Jason Cochran]

How you doing? Wonderful. It's not an easy thing to go through.

[Terry O'Donnell]

Kelly has a lot to say about what happened to Jason, but when the conversation turns to Chris Reagan, not so much.

[Jason Cochran]

I'm not trying to push you. I'm not. Not at all. I just pushed me to say something I didn't do. I didn't say you didn't.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I said, by the time this is done, you'll tell me what happened to Chris.

[Jason Cochran]

I sat here and drank a whole iced tea before you got here.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

Detective Ogden starts talking with Kelly and building a relationship with her.

[Terry O'Donnell]

That relationship building involves several conversations that Jeremy recorded undercover, including at a location, local restaurant.

[Jason Cochran]

You can begin the next chapter of your life. There's only one way for you to do this, though, and that's 100% honest.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I think she wanted to see whether or not I was going to be a worthy adversary, and I think she wanted to play the game.

[Jason Cochran]

And I don't want to make a permanent decision on that temporary thought feeling,

[Interviewer]

But I'm the way I feel now because that's not fair to me or whoever else it would have been.

[Narrator/Host]

It's almost like the two of them were having a chess game.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Absolutely.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I'm trying to figure out what's the best way to get somebody to tell you a secret that only they know. And I come up with this idea about a fake letter.

[Narrator/Host]

Detective Ogden calls Jason's friend Walt Ammerman and tells him he wants him to be part of this plan to catch Kelly Cochran.

What he wanted Walt to do was become an actor. They were going to have him call Kelly from a parked car to talk about this letter.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

It is March 12, 2016, at 4:38pm he's going to be calling Kelly Cochran.

[Walt Ammerman]

He wanted me to call her and tell her that I had a letter that Jason had mailed me,

[Terry O'Donnell]

but it's not true. There is no letter. This is all made up, Made up for one purpose, to see what Kelly Cochran's reaction would be.

[Walt Ammerman]

I got a letter, like January 4th or 5th or something like that from him.

[Narrator/Host]

You were basically having to convince Kelly that her dead husband was sending a message from beyond the grave, that he

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

felt or knew that she likely was going to do something to him.

[Walt Ammerman]

The note says, if something were to happen to me, please send this in a few weeks to the Iron River Police Department. It's like I'm supposed to mail this, but I just wanted to tell you,

[Interviewer]

please don't.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Please don't. She says, please don't mail it.

[Walt Ammerman]

I don't know.

[Interviewer]

You gotta do what you gotta do.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

And right then, I knew, like, he got her.

[Walt Ammerman]

Yeah. Hook, line, and sinker.

[Narrator/Host]

And what did that tell you?

[Walt Ammerman]

Told me I did the right thing.

[Narrator/Host]

But that wasn't your only chess mood. You had another trick up your sleeve, which was a tree and a carving.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Yeah,

[Narrator/Host]

the trees over there.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Yeah, the tree's right over there. And I had watched her several times there.

[Terry O'Donnell]

He's actually been following Kelly Cochran. She doesn't know this. And Detective Ogden knows that Kelly goes to this one park all the time and is by A certain tree.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

She would just come and she would sit on that log. And there was a couple times where I thought she was even crying.

[Terry O'Donnell]

So he decides to make a carving on the tree that will really freak her out when she sees it. And what does he carves into the tree is Chris is here.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I thought maybe she would see it as a sign from the dead or maybe even something supernatural and just generate her to talk to me even more.

[Narrator/Host]

It's not exactly the way they teach it at the police academy.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

No. All I saw were her running through the woods. And then all of a sudden, the truck backed out and she took off. That's the night that she decides to tell me everything.

[Jason Cochran]

You watched him die, right? Where did he shoot him? In his body. You don't know? Not really. You caught Chris in your arms.

[Terry O'Donnell]

This is huge. For the first time, Kelly is admitting Chris was murdered.

[Jason Cochran]

Chris is lying in your house, shot. You told me this and that he died quickly, Correct?

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

She says that Jason shot Chris. Her portion is being forced to help clean up.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I'm the victim. My husband was abusive. I had no choice. I couldn't. I couldn't tell anybody or he'd kill me, too.

[Jason Cochran]

What happened to Chris? What?

[Interviewer]

Downsize.

[Jason Cochran]

What do you mean by downsize? What did he do with Chris?

[Interviewer]

Cut him up.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I remember her words being he downsized him, and it just made my stomach turn.

[Narrator/Host]

That was the first time she admitted not only had Chris been murdered, but that he'd been dismembered.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Correct.

[Terry O'Donnell]

And she goes on to give a very specific detail that will come into play later. She claims that Jason forced her to pull the bullet out of Chris body with a pair of forceps.

[Narrator/Host]

Why not arrest her?

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

You have to understand, I put her in a position to play the victim. She had to do all of these things under duress. And that's how she's gonna be able to disclose other information so that we can recover Chris Reagan.

[Jason Cochran]

But you know where he put Tifa? Yes. You're gonna go with me, okay? We're gonna go.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

He says, we're going to Michigan. You're gonna show us where the body is.

[Narrator/Host]

Detective Ogden and Kelly drive all night. He is counting on her to help him. But will she?

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

With her, it was like, lie, lie, lie, truth, lie, truth, lie, lie, lie, truth.

[Narrator/Host]

It's the middle of the night. Kelly Cochran is driving with Detective Jeremy Otto back to the Upper peninsula of Michigan to show him where she and her husband Jason buried Chris's remains.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Driving up there with her, it was interesting. I mean, she did what most people do after they tell you their deepest, darkest secret. She slept.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

They drive all night. They leave at, like, midnight. They get tired. River, you know, at, like, seven in the morning.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

It's just miles and miles of trees and rolling hills. You could literally go to a place here where nobody else had ever been.

[Narrator/Host]

Pretty easy to hide a body.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Yeah. It's weird how beautiful it is and at the same time, eerie.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

So as I'm following them, they, you know, go down to this one particular area.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

We're just, like, on a flat, straight spot in the road. And she's like, it's right here.

[Terry O'Donnell]

And there are other police officers there to search the area, but they find nothing. So the question is, did Kelly get the spot wrong, or is Kelly lying? Detective Ogden then asked Kelly to show him around her house where the murder happened.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I wanted her to explain to me what happened to Chris and how he died. And then we'll go upstairs and we're gonna work our way down, all right? And for it to all be on film. She started to take me upstairs. This was your room, Kellen.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

Yes.

[Narrator/Host]

She told you basically that they had had sex upstairs.

[Narrator]

Right.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

There was some kind of sex involved. You and him ended up up here in this room. And that's what went on the 14th.

[Jason Cochran]

You did? Mm.

[Co-worker/Team Leader]

Mm.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

You know, it's like you can see her mind working. Whatever story she was gonna tell me was gonna have to match the physical evidence that we may or may not discover.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

She takes him back to and says, you know, actually, it happened out here in the hallway, in this back hallway.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

You were having sex right here. Okay. So she says that once they're done, Chris starts to walk up the stairs into the kitchen, and Jason, unbeknownst to her, shoots him from the basement. You're telling me that Jason shot him from behind and that Chris falls back on her and that they both tumbled down the stairs? Is he still on top of you when you get to the bottom?

[Kelly Cochran's Brother]

Is he.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Are you actually under him?

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Okay.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

With her, it was like, lie, lie, lie, truth, lie, truth, lie, lie, lie, truth. You gotta figure it out.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

What's Jason say to you?

[Jason Cochran]

Nothing. Sometimes

[Terry O'Donnell]

as incriminating as all this is, Detective Ogden is sure she isn't telling the whole truth.

[Narrator/Host]

You continue that conversation back in Indiana?

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Yeah.

[Narrator/Host]

Hours and hours of conversation.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Yeah. There's over 100 hours.

[Jason Cochran]

What don't you believe?

[Narrator/Host]

Again, it's all recorded undercover.

[Jason Cochran]

What don't I believe? I'm not sure.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I'm not sure with you.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

His communication with her really Picked up speed back in Indiana because he's now determined.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I'll meet her at a park. I've sat down at a restaurant with her.

[Jason Cochran]

I only have one goal.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

It's to bring Chris home.

[Narrator/Host]

Detective Ogden believes that the more they talk, the more likely Kelly is to slip up. And if she slips up, she may just lead them to Chris Regan's body.

[Jason Cochran]

Honestly, I don't care if you believe me or not.

[Interviewer]

He's not in the ground.

[Jason Cochran]

I know he's not in the ground. Give you my word.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

It seemed like Kelly kind of wanted to be playing with Detective Ogden, this sort of cat and mouse game.

[Jason Cochran]

You have to understand that there are things that you've said throughout this that would cause concern. Okay. And changes and variations of your story.

[Narrator/Host]

She continues to maintain throughout all these hundreds of hours that she's the victim.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

It's always my husband forced me to do this.

[Jason Cochran]

You have said that you're the victim when it comes to Chris, that you were put in this bad position, Right?

[Interviewer]

Yes.

[Narrator/Host]

At one point, you put your foot down and say, stop lying.

[Jason Cochran]

No more of this crap. Lying to me. No more. No. All the. I've been back and forth with you all.

[Narrator/Host]

What brought that on?

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Frustration, probably.

[Narrator/Host]

Ogden thinks Kelly realizes he is losing his patience and might finally just arrest her. It was all about to come to a head. Soon after, Detective Ogden gets a misspelled text from Kelly. Ever been to the West Coast? I was driving last night. Sure enough, she skipped town.

[Terry O'Donnell]

Except she didn't head west after all. The police tracked her as she fled south to Kentucky.

[Jason Cochran]

33 year old Kelly Cochran was arrested in Graves County, Kentucky, after a tip to the US Marshals. Cochran was wanted in Michigan.

[Narrator/Host]

And so when you interview her in Kentucky, in many ways, it was a breakthrough confession.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Yes.

[Interviewer]

Things are different.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Why are they different?

[Interviewer]

Because I'm here.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I interviewed her all day that day, and then I interviewed her for a portion of the day the next day.

[Terry O'Donnell]

Now Kelly drops another bombshell.

[Co-worker/Team Leader]

I cheated.

[Interviewer]

It would be my responsibility regardless if he helped or not.

[Narrator/Host]

Her new story. She now claims she knew in advance that Jason was going to kill Chris Reagan the night she invited him to their home.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

He took part in the planning of it. You allowed it to occur when you didn't have to allow it to occur.

[Narrator/Host]

And she tells Ogden she knew this because they had an agreement.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

When does that agreement occur?

[Interviewer]

Wedding night.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

And your agreement from the time you were married was that you have the affair. It's your responsibility to kill off that person.

[Interviewer]

Or he would kill me.

[Jason Cochran]

Or he would kill you.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Vice versa.

[Interviewer]

Right.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

If either spouse were to cheat during the course of the marriage, the cheating spouse would have to either kill their lover or be killed by this other spouse.

[Narrator/Host]

You heard that, right. And yet, that bizarre alleged wedding day pact is just the start of what she reveals.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I'm gonna get emotional.

[Sergeant Cindy Barrett]

I can't.

[Interviewer]

I.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Wait one second because it still gets me every time. Introducing Meta Glasses. You have questions. They've got answers.

[Narrator/Host]

Hey, Meta, what's the capital of Peru?

[Local Resident/Commentator]

Lima.

[Terry O'Donnell]

How do you say where's the restroom in Spanish?

[Private Investigator]

Dondes talvano.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Hey, Meta, Is a hot dog a sandwich?

[Narrator/Host]

Technically, no. Spiritually, yes.

[Jason Cochran]

Hey, Meta, what should I do with my life?

[Narrator/Host]

That's one of life's biggest questions. What do you think?

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Ask anything with the new Meta glasses.

[Advertisement Voice]

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[Interviewer]

It's the Priceline negotiator.

[Advertisement Voice]

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[Sponsor/Advertisement Voice]

Now.

[Narrator/Host]

In jail in Michigan, charged with murder, Kelly Cochran is taken out of her cell to go on what cops are calling a field trip.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

This is just, you know, giving consent

[Interviewer]

to go to your house with you.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Kelly had agreed that she would take me to Chris's remains where she left them. She wanted to do the right thing.

[Interviewer]

See where it starts to curve to the left? I'd park there.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

She takes her a little further east than she took us on the first day.

[Interviewer]

What would the biggest piece of bone be that you. I mean, the torso, and that was here. So then we should find ribs. And I think that generally the skull

[Jason Cochran]

should be the biggest.

[Private Investigator Jim McNeil]

Though, as she's talking, she has no guilt at all. So carefree, like, no big deal.

[Terry O'Donnell]

This was not exactly a summer day for her.

[Interviewer]

I smoked dinner.

[Terry O'Donnell]

She had a lot of cigarettes,

[Sergeant Cindy Barrett]

and

[Terry O'Donnell]

then she asked for a cheese pizza for lunch.

[Interviewer]

How do you. Cheese pizza? Just cheese. Maybe a soda. Can you bring pizza?

[Narrator/Host]

While the searching continues, Chief Frizzo takes her to the house.

[Interviewer]

You say that, you know, Jason pulled him into here, and that's where you

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

cut them out, and she's eating a piece of pizza. Of course, when we're doing this,

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

then Kelly also is just nonchalantly walking past the kitchen sink and says, oh, there's the forceps.

[Jason Cochran]

You said something about forceps. Yeah. Is that what you're talking about?

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Jason Cochran]

There you go.

[Interviewer]

You're saying you use those?

[Jason Cochran]

Yep.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

It had been sitting there the whole time, and I said, are you saying you use those to try and get the bullet out of Chris's head? And she said, yep, just like that.

[Narrator/Host]

It was critical evidence matching what Kelly had said in that early interrogation when she first admitted that Chris had been murdered. But back in these woods, an even more important discovery. Chris Regan's skull itself.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I'm going to get emotional. Like, I wait one second because it still gets me every time. I just said to myself, I finally found you. I just literally, like, said that to myself, you know?

[Jason Cochran]

So

[Terry O'Donnell]

that was a very sobering moment. And the only bright spot on that is they could link Kelly Cochran into his murder, and that got things going so that she would go to trial.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

The Kelly Cochran case just is the biggest case we've had locally, maybe ever.

[Kelly Cochran's Brother]

Kelly's life was riding on the trial,

[Narrator/Host]

despite all that she's admitted in those interrogations. Kelly Cochran pleads not guilty. I was definitely afraid that she was gonna get off.

[Sergeant Cindy Barrett]

You never know how a jury's going to go.

[Prosecutor]

Ladies and gentlemen, Kelly and Jason Cochran were bonded in blood.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

The case was prosecuted by Iron county prosecutor Melissa Powell.

[Prosecutor]

We were pretty confident going into trial that we could convict her of being an aider and a better. Kelly Cochran was a willing participant, and because of that, she's just as guilty as he is.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

Michael Schulke was the defense attorney for Kelly Cochran.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

The only evidence that the people have

[Jason Cochran]

to get to their burden is the word.

[Narrator/Host]

Ms. Cochran.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

What's her word worth?

[Jason Cochran]

She's a liar.

[Kelly Cochran's Brother]

We believe that Jason acted alone because he was not into this open marriage and was jealous and angry that Kelly was involved with another man.

[Sergeant Cindy Barrett]

Please be seated.

[Narrator/Host]

The trial would last almost three weeks.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

She has already admitted that she knew what was going to happen.

[Narrator/Host]

And though there were some 60 witnesses, the case pretty much boiled down to just one. Kelly Cochran herself.

[Terry O'Donnell]

Kelly testified about the abuse that she claims she suffered in her marriage.

[Interviewer]

There was a lot of times where he would grab me and push me, shove me.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

He became very jealous, very angry.

[Interviewer]

There was times where he had threatened me in the house, outside of the house, throwing stuff at me.

[Prosecutor]

Kelly Cochran testified for several days. I don't think she helped herself at all. You never told people that he was abusive until this case came about, did you?

[Sergeant Cindy Barrett]

Until after.

[Prosecutor]

And you never told people that he

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

threatened you until this case came about, right?

[Interviewer]

Until after.

[Terry O'Donnell]

When I saw Kelly in person, I couldn't believe. Believe Christopher would have had a sexual relationship with her. She looked like the devil. Her eyes were blank.

[Interviewer]

I don't know if I would have been capable to shoot him or even do anything about it.

[Narrator/Host]

There's nothing that comes out of her mouth that I would ever believe.

[Kelly Cochran's Brother]

I think the jury wanted to hear from her and how she was going to explain away hundreds of hours of previous statements.

[Terry O'Donnell]

Remember her story changed in all those recorded interrogations from I know nothing to Jason forced me to help kill Chris.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

When does that agreement occur?

[Terry O'Donnell]

A wedding night to we had a wedding pact. And I was part of the murder

[Interviewer]

because every time I had an interview or an interrogation with him, him, everything I said was wrong.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

What do you mean everything you said was wrong?

[Interviewer]

He would question me until I said what was supposed to be said.

[Narrator/Host]

What was it like watching Kelly on the stand?

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Excruciating.

[Prosecutor]

So it's your testimony today that you

[Terry O'Donnell]

had no plans to kill Chris at all?

[Interviewer]

Correct. I've never wanted him dead.

[Prosecutor]

And you lied to Detective Agman when you said there was a plan?

[Jason Cochran]

Correct.

[Sergeant Cindy Barrett]

Clicked.

[Narrator/Host]

She swears this testimony is no lie.

[Prosecutor]

Today you're telling the truth to these

[Narrator/Host]

12 or 14 strangers?

[Jason Cochran]

Yes, ma'.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Am.

[Terry O'Donnell]

With Kelly admitting so many lies, the defense asked the jury, how can they believe one story versus any other?

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Why is she truthful when she says she was acting with Jason versus times that she said he acted alone? What makes her more truthful then?

[Prosecutor]

I think at that point in time, she overwhelmed. She's made so many statements, she's told so many lies. It's time to tell the truth. People disclose the truth in bits and pieces when they're ready and when they're caught. The defendants in this matter were bonded in blood. Chris Reagan was bathed in it. And at this time, I'm asking you

[Narrator/Host]

to wash away the blood and find

[Prosecutor]

the defendant guilty of all counts.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

There is reasonable doubt here.

[Kelly Cochran's Brother]

People fail to meet the burden. And if you believe that, you have to acquit it.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Kelly had made the comment before trial, you don't think I can turn just one juror? I was concerned that there might be one juror that buys her story.

[Narrator/Host]

And as those jurors start to deliberate, there is something else. What is it that they haven't heard?

[Jason Cochran]

All right.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

The jury deliberated for about three hours, which, considering it was a two and a half week long trial, wasn't very long at all.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

The jury comes back in, and as they're standing in the jury box. I felt confident because, you know, a couple of them did look over and smile. Just kind of give a look. Count number one, open murder.

[Interviewer]

Guilty of first degree premeditated murder. Aiding and abetting.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Everybody just cried, and Chris's family was sitting right behind me, and the first thing I did is just turn around and hug them.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Kelly was just straight faced during the reading of the verdict. I didn't notice any changes in her at all.

[Kelly Cochran's Brother]

Unfortunately, the jury bought the story that the prosecution put forth.

[Private Investigator]

35 year old Kelly Cochran will never again walk free.

[Local Resident/Commentator]

Guilty of five total felony counts.

Kelly was convicted on first degree premeditated murder, which carries a mandatory life sentence in Michigan. And without the possibility of parole.

[Narrator/Host]

For me, it's not gonna change anything. You know, Chris is gone and what she did is just horrible. I hope she rots in hell. Kelly Cochran is convicted and sentenced. But there's much more to her case than what was presented in court. Dark and twisted allegations that the jurors never heard.

[Terry O'Donnell]

These are some really disturbing allegations that were brought forth by the neighbors of the Cochrans, who said they heard these weird construction noises coming from Kelly and Jason's house late at night.

[Jason Cochran]

It's reciprocating. Reciprocating saw, the one with the real long blade goes back and forth and cut through wood and nails and everything at the same time with it. Kelly and Jason, Ashley me if I want to come over for dinner one night, I was like, yeah, sure. And this was like two days after Chris was missing. It's like mind boggling how much meat they had. So we were always wondering about that. What if they were that kind of people and actually did kill a guy and then butchered him up and had us over for dinner? I think they hacked him up and said dude to us. Don't even say that. I'm like, oh, God. Oh, God. Like, no. When I realized that I might have ate the dude, I didn't want to believe. Changed me. It changed me 100%.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

It was a theory that they came to a conclusion on their own. That wasn't something that we ever even brought into the case investigation. It's not that I didn't think it could happen, but it wasn't significant at the time.

[Terry O'Donnell]

But one thing investigators took very seriously was the allegation that there could be other murder victims out there. Kelly's own brother told Detective Ogden that Kelly said herself that there were more

[Jason Cochran]

victims, and the more is coming from her. She's telling you guys correct. And how many More bodies? Did she tell you? Mostly. There's nine total.

[Terry O'Donnell]

Police were recording all of Kelly Cochran's phone conversations while she was behind bars. And you can hear her own mother asking her, is it true? Are there other murder victims?

[Interviewer]

Hi, Kev. What's going on? Kelly, what the hell is wrong? I mean, where did all this come from? You didn't see this coming? I see this coming after it all happened, but I didn't know that you guys killed people before all this. Do you have a conscience? Has this, like. I mean, have you always felt this way? I've always been like this.

[Jason Cochran]

Huh.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Kelly actually told me that she was born the way she is. She's never had emotions. She's never had sympathy.

[Kelly Cochran's Brother]

There is no evidence that has been brought forth that would indicate that any stories that were told by Kelly of being involved in murders of other people are true. There are no bodies coming out of the woodwork that are tied to Kelly Cochrane.

[Narrator/Host]

But what does Kelly Cochran herself now say about the allegations that she's a serial killer? You had told police that you had killed others in the past. Is there truth to that? And in a case where they uncovered so much darkness and evil, there would be a surprising light at the end of the tunnel for the two lead investigators.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

Following the guilty verdict, Kelly is sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Chris Reagan.

[Narrator/Host]

Eleven months later, Kelly pleads guilty to murdering her husband, Jason Cochran, in Indiana, and is sentenced to an additional 65 years in prison.

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

I believe that the idea behind this evil and her. I mean, it's the purest form of evil that you're gonna get.

[Narrator/Host]

I spoke to Kelly Cochran from her prison in Michigan, where she's serving out her life sentence. You told police that you had killed others in the past. Is there truth to that?

[Interviewer]

No, I've never killed anybody.

[Narrator/Host]

Then why would you tell investigators you had and lead them on wild goose chases?

[Interviewer]

I don't know.

[Narrator/Host]

They said they spoke to neighbors who lived down the street from you who were convinced that they had a barbecue that consisted of human remains.

[Interviewer]

I heard about that. Here's the thing. I never had a barbecue with anybody. Nobody was ever cooked. Nobody was barbecued.

[Narrator/Host]

I've spoken to investigators, Kelly, who said that when they talked to you and heard your story, that it made them believe. Believe in pure evil. What would you say to that?

[Interviewer]

I believe that's because I'm not a bad person. I was raised by good people. I've never harmed anybody.

[Narrator/Host]

And so, in your view, what did happen that night?

[Interviewer]

When Chris died, my husband Disabled the man and cut him up in front of me.

[Narrator/Host]

And you just stood there doing nothing.

[Interviewer]

What are you talking about?

[Narrator/Host]

You didn't call the police.

[Co-worker/Team Leader]

You didn't.

[Interviewer]

I was tied up.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

This is the first I'm hearing of her ever saying she'd been tied up. This is a game. She's going to continue this game as long as she can, and she's not done with it yet.

[Terry O'Donnell]

There probably is not a punishment on this earth that could match what she did to Christopher. I can feel Christopher with me when I'm around Apple Blossom Trail.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

Feeling warm.

[Terry O'Donnell]

Enjoy happiness. Because it was a good place for us.

[Narrator/Host]

For Laura Frizzo, the case had a bittersweet outcome. Although she was able to help bring justice for Chris Reagan's murder, she was fired from her job as police chief.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

After Kelly's arrest, I started to have some issues with my boss at work, and those issues kind of got heated.

[Narrator/Host]

But while Laura may have lost her job, she found romance in an unlikely place.

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

I felt immediately connected to him just because of the person he was.

[Narrator/Host]

And so you kind of made the first move.

[Prosecutor]

What happened?

[Chief Laura Frizzo]

One day text him, and I said, do you want to kiss me? I was like, why did I send that? Because there was, like, dead air. Just no response for a long time,

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

you know, the answer was yes right out of the gate as soon as I read it.

[Narrator/Host]

So you asked for the first kiss. Who asked for whose hand in marriage?

[Private Investigator Jim McNeil]

I did.

[Narrator/Host]

How'd that go, big guy?

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

It went well. She accepted right away.

[Narrator/Host]

What's the future for both of you?

[Detective Jeremy Ogden]

We own a piece of land that Laura picked in the up right on a lake. And one day, I'm going to build her a dream house there.

[Narrator/Host]

And of course, we wish them the best as they now plan their next

[Jason Cochran]

chapter together, away from their work.

[Narrator/Host]

That is our program for tonight.

[Jason Cochran]

Thanks so much for watching.

[Narrator/Host]

I'm David Muir, and from all of

[Jason Cochran]

us here at 2020 and ABC News, good night.

[Sponsor/Advertisement Voice]

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