A New Jersey man has pleaded guilty to concealing the death of his cousin, a Marine Corps veteran, and living alongside the man’s decomposing body for more than eight months while continuing to collect his state benefits.
Steven M. Blankenship, 59, admitted during an Oct. 9 hearing that he hid the death of Michael S. Blankenship, 72, in order to keep the veteran’s benefits and checks flowing into his own hands, according to NJ.com. Steven had served as his older cousin’s caretaker in the man’s mobile home at Evergreen Estates in Fairfield Township.
Authorities say the scheme bilked the state out of thousands of dollars.
The case came to light in April 2025, when New Jersey State Police arrived at Michael’s trailer for a wellness check. Court documents say troopers detected an odor “consistent with decomposition” while knocking on his door. Once inside, officers followed the smell to a bedroom closet, where they found Michael’s body wrapped in three layers of plastic. The closet door, which had no knob, had been sealed shut with duct tape.
Investigators also recovered a note inside the trailer that they believe Steven wrote. It stated that Michael had died of “dementia-related causes” on July 27, 2024, months before the discovery, and that its author had continued using the dead man’s credit card and income because of his own declining health, according to police.
A grand jury indicted Steven in July 2025 on charges of theft and desecrating human remains. He initially turned down a plea offer that would have carried a 12-year prison term before ultimately pleading guilty in exchange for a 10-year sentence.
As part of the plea, Steven must also pay $15,000 in restitution to the New Jersey Department of Labor. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 11.
Michael Blankenship, who was discharged from the Marine Corps in 1970, was buried with full military honors in 2025.
