A man who’s accused of attacking a man and woman in West Baltimore and then killing a tech entrepreneur was indicted Tuesday on charges including first-degree murder, rape, arson and related offenses.
Jason Billingsley, 32, of Sandtown-Winchester, held a man and woman captive on Sept. 19 in the basement of a home in West Baltimore, Baltimore Police reported. He then sexually assaulted the woman, investigators allege, cut her throat, poured a liquid on both and set them on fire.
Billingsley later killed Pava LaPere, 26, of Mount Vernon, a tech entrepreneur and CEO who started EcoMap Technologies while she was a student at Johns Hopkins University, police said. Her body was found on Sept. 25 on the roof of her apartment building.
Baltimore State’s Attorney Ivan Bates has vowed to seek life in prison without the possibility of parole.
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LaPere was named this year to the Forbes “30 Under 30″ list in the social impact category, and at least 200 people gathered for a vigil in her memory at the Washington Monument.
Police initially did not disclose that they had obtained an arrest warrant for Billingsley, a convicted sex offender, in the earlier attack.
Law enforcement later arrested him at a train station in Bowie. His attorney, Assistant Public Defender Jason Rodriguez, has not commented on the case.
Billingsley is being held without bail in the Baltimore Central Booking & Intake Center, according to jail records. It’s unclear when he’s expected back in court.
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