Man pleads guilty to killing Baltimore tech entrepreneur in attack that shocked city

BALTIMORE (AP) — A man pleaded guilty Friday to killing Baltimore technology entrepreneur Pava LaPere last September in a apparently random attack It shocked the city and sparked criticism of the police for their response.

Jason Billingsley, 33, pleaded guilty instead of going to trial Friday morning and was sentenced to life in prison. He also pleaded guilty on Monday to two counts of attempted murder in a separate arson and home invasion case that occurred days before LaPere was found dead on the roof of her downtown Baltimore apartment building.

Authorities said Monday’s plea deal included two additional life prison sentences.

LaPere, who founded a tech startup out of her dorm room at Johns Hopkins University and was named to Forbes’ 30 under 30 list for social impact, died of strangulation and blunt force trauma after being sexually assaulted. remembers as someone who has remained focused on building community and using entrepreneurship to create meaningful social change, even as her national profile has grown.

At a bail review hearing that followed Billingsley’s arrest, prosecutors said he admitted to beating LaPere with a brick. He managed to get into her downtown Baltimore apartment building after beckoning her to the glass door, but there’s no reason to believe they knew each other, police said.

His body was found six days after the home invasion case in which police say Billingsley entered an apartment building posing as the building’s maintenance man. According to his arrest warrant, he pointed a gun at a woman inside and used duct tape to subdue her and her boyfriend. He then repeatedly raped the woman and slit her throat with a knife before dousing both victims in liquid and setting them on fire, leaving them with severe burns, police wrote.

Billingsley was quickly identified as a suspect in the case. Baltimore police said they were actively searching for him, but did not immediately alert the public because they did not believe he was committing “random” acts of violence.

The victims filed a complaint earlier this year, accusing the building’s owner and management company of negligent hiring practices.

Billingsley was released from prison in October 2022 after serving a reduced sentence for a 2013 rape because he earned good conduct credits behind bars.

Earlier this year, Maryland lawmakers heard testimony from LaPere’s parents and adopted a bill to end good conduct credits for anyone imprisoned for first-degree rape. The new law will take effect Oct. 1.