- Kelly Cochran and her husband Jason were high school sweethearts who made a disturbing pact on their wedding night about what would happen if either cheated
- When Kelly began an affair with co-worker Christopher Regan, he disappeared in October 2014, and investigators later uncovered evidence linking the couple to his murder
- Kelly was convicted of Regan’s murder and sentenced to life without parole, before receiving an additional 65-year sentence after pleading guilty to her husband Jason’s death
Kelly and Jason Cochran seemed like they were destined to be together.
Growing up next door to each other, they became high school sweethearts, and married after graduating university.
Polar opposites – Kelly was talkative and liked to take charge, while Jason was quieter and more reserved – the pair balanced each other out.
They also built a business together, running a swimming-pool installation, repair and cleaning company.
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Then Jason developed serious back problems.
When the injury eventually prevented him from the physical work involved in the business, Kelly took up the slack, and increasingly looked after the practical responsibilities of their household too.
By 2013, the couple relocated interstate to get Jason better access to medical care.
Settling in their new home, Kelly got a job at a factory that manufactured parts for Naval ships.
It was there she formed a close bond with her colleague Chris Regan, 53, a military veteran and divorced dad of two boys.
Despite being 20 years her senior, Kelly and Chris got on well. They were both new to the area, and outgoing by nature, loved socialising together during their breaks.
But before long, other employees at the company noticed their closeness, and tongues began wagging.
Could there be more to their relationship than they were letting on?
Around the same time, things started to fizzle out between Chris and his girlfriend Terri O’Donnell.
But the pair remained amicable.
And when Chris texted Terri on October 14, 2014, making dinner plans, it seemed the couple might be able to patch things up.
But 10 days later, Terri grew increasingly concerned when she hadn’t heard from Chris again.
Filing a missing person’s report with police, a search was conducted of Chris’ home.
It looked a total mess – something that was out of character for the ever-tidy Chris. His phone was also missing, and later, his Honda Genesis was found outside the town.
Inside the car they found a handwritten note with directions to Kelly and Jason’s house.
The police bought the couple in for questioning, during which Kelly made a shock revelation.
She and Chris were having an affair. And she told officers her husband was aware, as they had an open relationship.
Jason, however, seemed upset by the news.
During a search of the couple’s house, officers found a book in which Jason wrote about seeking revenge against someone police believed to be Chris.
But without Chris’ body, there was no evidence he’d been harmed.
Shortly after, Kelly and Jason moved again, wanting a fresh start.
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For nearly two years, Chris’ disappearance remained a mystery.
Then in February 2016 came more tragedy. Kelly called emergency services, reporting Jason wasn’t breathing. He was pronounced dead.
His death appeared to be caused by a heroin overdose – something Kelly claimed he’d taken to ease the chronic pain of his injuries.
But while an autopsy confirmed he had copious amounts of drugs in his system, his actual cause of death was asphyxiation by strangulation. Jason had been murdered.
Rather than immediately arresting Kelly, detective Jeremy Ogden cultivated a relationship with her, conducting a series of interviews in the hope Kelly would start talking…
And Kelly delivered in spades.
She claimed that Jason had fatally shot Chris, then forced her to remove the bullet from his skull before dismembering his body.
But when she fled shortly after her revelation, police were sure there was more to her story.
Tracking her down, Kelly was arrested and bought back in for questioning.
It was there she admitted there was far more to Chris’ death than anyone could’ve imagined, confessing she and Jason had made an incredible – and deadly – pact on their wedding night.
If either of them was ever unfaithful in their marriage, the cheating spouse would have to kill their lover…
So, she claimed, when Jason learned of her affair with Chris, the pair devised a plan to lure her boyfriend to their home.
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While they were intimate, she told police Jason shot Chris in the head, before using an electric saw to dismember him. She even led police to the place they disposed of his remains.
Despite her shock confession, Kelly pleaded not guilty to Chris’ murder, claiming she never believed the pact she’d made with Jason was serious, and she’d only helped dispose of Chris’ body out of fear that her husband would turn on her next.
Constantly changing her story, in May 2017, Kelly Cochran, then 34, was found guilty in the first-degree murder of Christopher Regan, among other charges.
She was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The following April, Cochran returned to court in Indiana, US, where she pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of her husband, Jason, striking a plea deal to avoid the death penalty.
As part of the agreement, she admitted to injecting Jason with drugs, before putting her hands on his neck, nose and mouth until he stopped breathing, because he’d taken ‘the only good thing’ in her life.
‘I evened the score,’ she told police of the revenge killing. She was given a 65-year sentence for the crime.
Two months later, the case was featured in a documentary titled Death North, which shed light on the investigation.
Speaking about the case, Chris’ ex-girlfriend Terri described how she was terrified of Kelly when she saw her for the first time in court.
‘It was like she was… laughing and saying “Look at what I did. You can’t stop me”.’
‘She just sat there and grinned. It was like the devil looking at you,’ Terri said.
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