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Background: The home in East Quogue, N.Y., where Christopher Hahn was found dead on Sept. 28, 2024 (Google Maps). Inset: Jeremy Allen (Suffolk County Police Department).
A New York man has been sentenced to spend the remainder of his life behind bars without the possibility of parole after being convicted of murdering his longtime friend. Jeremy Allen, 44, was found guilty of the brutal murder of 43-year-old Christopher Hahn, with evidence showing that Allen beat, suffocated, and stabbed Hahn to death.
The shocking crime took place at Allen’s residence in East Quogue, New York, and was captured on surveillance cameras, according to Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney. The footage documented a horrific six-hour ordeal, during which Hahn endured extreme suffering before succumbing to his injuries. The chilling video and audio recordings were key pieces of evidence in the conviction.
During the trial, District Attorney Tierney revealed that Allen had placed a plastic bag over Hahn’s face, securing it with a loose knot. He then sat nearby in a lawn chair, watching as Hahn struggled for air for approximately eight minutes, demonstrating a disturbing level of callousness.
According to Newsday’s reports from the courtroom, Allen and Hahn had been friends since their high school days, but their relationship soured in the months leading up to the tragic event. Their meeting on September 27, 2024, was intended to resolve a dispute over a $1,000 debt related to a “boat deal.” Although text messages presented in court suggested the two had reconciled, their reunion ended in tragedy.
Detectives from the Suffolk County Police Department reported that the two men initially planned to attend an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting together. However, they ended up at a brewery instead and decided to return to Allen’s house via Uber after a night of drinking, leading to the fateful encounter.
Tierney said a few minutes after midnight, surveillance cameras at the back of Allen’s house captured audio of Allen brutally beating Hahn for 18 minutes. Both men then appeared on camera when Allen was seen dragging a “bruised and semi-conscious” Hahn onto the rear deck. Allen then began beating Hahn with a baseball bat. Allen then left to retrieve a plastic bag, which he placed over Hahn’s head and face, then secured loosely with a knot.
“Allen then sat on a lawn chair a few feet from the victim while watching him struggle to breathe for approximately eight minutes,” Tierney said.
After suffocating Hahn, Allen went inside the house to get a knife and stabbed Hahn in the neck 10 times. During the six-hour ordeal, Allen told Hahn, “Die. It’s not so hard. Just die.”
As Hahn took his final breaths, Allen was seen standing over him, smiling.
The next morning, Allen attempted to clean up the scene and covered Hahn’s body with a blanket. Allen called a handyman to help him. The handyman arrived at Allen’s home and saw “blood throughout the home” and Hahn’s body on the rear deck. Allen told the handyman he was not allowed to leave the home, but the handyman persuaded Allen to let him leave. The handyman promptly fled Allen’s home and called the police.
Newsday reported that Hahn’s family members and friends attended the sentencing on Thursday. Hahn’s mother called Allen a “piece of s—” and told him to “rot in Hell.” Of her son, she said, “He always got back on his feet no matter how difficult his journey was. I miss him so much.”
Assistant District Attorney Elena Tomaro read a letter from Hahn’s friend, Blake Cornell, who wrote that the “darkness” surrounding his friend’s death should not “outshine his spirit.” Cornell added, “He lit up every room he entered.”
Allen apologized for the crime and told the court, “I can’t figure out what I did,” claiming he was “bipolar.”
Allen was found guilty by a jury of first-degree-murder and tampering with evidence. Newsday reported that he is the first defendant to be sentenced to life without the possibility of parole in Suffolk County in nearly a decade.