Newlywed Cliff Death: Victim's Friend Was Suspicious of Jordan Linn Graham
Sept. 11, 2013 — -- A friend of Cody Johnson, the 25-year-old Montana man whose wife admitted to pushing him to his death from a cliff just days after their wedding, says that he immediately suspected his friend's new wife after he was found dead in July.
Jordan Linn Graham, the 22-year-old Montana woman who admitted to pushing Johnson from a cliff in Montana's Glacier National Park on July 7, will be back in a federal courtroom today, facing second-degree murder charges. Last month Graham admitted to pushing her husband from atop a cliff and covering up the death when being interviewed by authorities.
Cameron Frederickson, a friend of Johnson, told ABC News that he was wary of the couple's relationship for some time.
"I almost instantly thought Jordan knew something, did something, or was a part of what happened to Cody," Frederickson said. "When Cody told me that he was going to propose to Jordan, I wasn't real supportive of it … I did have a conversation with him saying I think he should reconsider."
The couple wed on June 29, and investigators say a mere eight days later the newlyweds went for a walk through Glacier National Park. Graham told her friends she was already having second thoughts about the marriage, and planned to tell him.
"I'm about to talk to him," she texted a friend that day, according to court documents, adding, "But dead serious if u don't hear from me at all again tonight, something happened."
As the couple neared the top of a cliff, an argument they'd been having got heated. According to an affidavit filed in Montana federal court, Graham told the FBI that her husband then grabbed her arm.
"Graham stated she could have just walked away, but due to her anger, she pushed Johnson with both hands in the back and as a result, he fell face first off the cliff," the affidavit states.
Graham's friend Lytaunie Blasdel told ABC News that she cannot believe her friend is capable of murder.
"I never ever expected her to be capable of hurting someone," Blasdel said. "Especially someone who would worship her. He would have given her anything at the drop of a hat."
FBI agents say Graham not only committed the crime, but is responsible for the subsequent cover-up. Graham first told authorities that she last saw her husband in the back seat of a car leaving their driveway, according to the affidavit.
Days later, Graham called authorities to report she'd found her husband dead at the bottom of that cliff.
According to court documents, when the park ranger commented it was odd place to locate a body, Graham said, "It was a place he wanted to see before he died."
On Monday, Graham's attorney, public defender Michael Donahoe, declined comment to ABCNews.com.
