'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Jennifer Blagg was a devoted Christian wife who suddenly went missing along with her daughter Abby on November 13, 2001. She lived with her husband, Michael Blagg, in Grand Junction, Colorado. Michael himself called the police when he found the house empty, the back door open, and blood stains on the bed.
Jennifer's decomposed body was found seven months later, in June 2002, dumped in a landfill; Abby's body was never found. Her husband, Michael, was found guilty of the first-degree murder of his wife in March 2004. He was sent for lifetime imprisonment while Abby's whereabouts remain a mystery.
The story of Jennifer Blagg is documented in Season 2, Episode 2 of the true crime show Married to Evil on ID. The episode aired at 10:02 p.m. on September 1, 2024. The official synopsis of the episode titled, Home Is Where the Nightmare Is reads,
Trending
Jenny and Mike are teen sweethearts but after marrying, Mike begins a campaign of control and violence against his wife and children; just as Jenny plans to escape her living nightmare, Mike finds out and decides he will do anything to stop her.
5 important details about Jennifer Blagg's murder
1) Michael was an authoritative husband
Jennifer Blagg met Michael while studying business at the National University in San Diego, California. Michael was a helicopter pilot for the U.S. Navy who was posted there. Jennifer felt that Michael shared the same Christian beliefs, and the two married in 1991.
The couple moved to Simpsonville, South Carolina after Michael retired from the Navy and pursued engineering. They soon had a little girl named Abby. Their friends defined the Blaggs to be a perfect couple, but there was a dark side to it. Michael had very stern rules in the house, and he got angry if it was broken.
In the episode, Jennifer's friend Eddie Melson recalls how Jennifer would panic before Michael came to the house, as he needed everything cleaned and tidy. She even tried getting her friends to leave, which could make Michael furious.
2) Jennifer Blagg disappeared with her daughter Abby on November 13, 2001
Jennifer Blagg, despite her unwillingness, had to shift to Grand Junction, Colorado, when Michael got a job there. At past 4 p.m., Michael called 911 emergency and reported that he couldn't find his wife and daughter in the house. He explained that he left the house early in the morning, and when he did check-in calls during the day, Jennifer wasn't picking up.
So he came back early and found the house empty with the windows and backdoors open, which was very unusual. The investigators found bloodstains on the master bed, but shockingly, there were no stains on the walls or any spots of dragging.
They found more blood marks on the family van with a luminol test, which crossed out the kidnapping. Detective Wayne Weyler from Mesa County Sheriff's Office and the team soon became suspicious that the crime case was staged.
3) Shocking evidence was found while searching the Blagg house
When the investigators made a thorough search of the Blagg house, they found three crucial pieces of evidence. The first was Jennifer Blagg's journal, which mentioned fighting with Michael. She wrote,
"Loving God With All Your Mind" … there's a little note that says "fought with Mike on Friday…"
Though Michael denied remembering anything like that, when Jennifer's dresser was searched, they found an apology note from Michael in which he wrote,
"I'm sorry if I've given the devil a foothold."
When the police searched the house computer, they found hardcore pornographic photographs. Michael explained that they came from very spiritual backgrounds, and the images were just meant to educate Jennifer and increase their intimacy.
But later that November, Michael agreed that he was indeed addicted to pornography, which caused a split in their relationship. After facing a rigorous investigation, Michael was rushed to the hospital as he cut his wrist while in a bathtub.
4) Jennifer Blagg's body was found in a landfill
Though the Mesa County Sheriff's office kept on moving the investigation, it was not until seven months after Jennifer Blagg's disappearance in June 2002 that they made a heartwrenching discovery. The investigators suspected that if Michael had indeed killed his wife and daughter, he would be dumping their bodies in his company's dumpster.
The investigating team went on to detect the remains in the Grand Junction County landfill. Using global positioning and landfill logs, the team set up a grid system similar to what is done on an archeological site. Then, a large group of investigators went to find the trash coming from Blagg's company in November 2001.
Sixteen days later, the team found the decomposed body of Jennifer Blagg, while the body of Abby could not be retrieved.
5) Michael murdered his wife and daughter while they were asleep
Two days later, after Jennifer Blagg's body was found, the police team arrested Michael from his mother, Betsy Blagg's home in Georgia. Medical Examiner Dean Havlick reported the case to be a homicide, where Jennifer Blagg was shot to death.
CBS News reported the case in an article published on May 12, 2018. They interviewed Investigator Steve King, who was behind the entire search. He stated,
"He shoots his wife. My belief is that he went upstairs and suffocated his daughter, put them both in the van and went to Amatek-Dixson, and put both of them in the trash receptacle there."
Despite Michael's mother and his sister Claire Peterson pleading for him to be innocent, he was taken on trial in March 2004, where he was found guilty. He was taken on a retrial in February 2018, where Michael was found guilty of first-degree murder again. He was again given lifetime imprisonment, which he currently serves in the Colorado Department of Corrections in Canon City, Colorado.
To know more details about Jennifer Blagg's murder, watch Season 2 of Married to Evil on Amazon Prime Video.
