Baltimore man sentenced to life in prison for murder of tech CEO Pava LaPere

A Baltimore man has been sentenced to life in prison for the 2023 murder of technology entrepreneur Pava LaPere, officials said.

Jason Billingsley, 33, pleaded guilty Friday to first-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder and was sentenced to three life terms in prison for the death of LaPere, as well as the rape of April Hurley and the attempted murder of Hurley and her boyfriend.

Billingsley, a career criminal, was released from prison after being convicted of a first-degree sex offense before going on a brutal shooting spree in Baltimore.

The cases led to changes in the law.

“This defendant should never have been released into society after his conviction for a first-degree sex offense to inflict immense trauma, pain and suffering on so many people in such a short period of time,” said District Attorney Ivan J. Bates.

“These cases inspired us to eliminate the penalty reductions for first-degree sex offenders in our legislation.”

On Sept. 19, 2023, Billingsley posed as maintenance personnel and knocked on the door of Hurley and her friend's apartment in the early morning hours, Bates said.

Billingsley kicked in the door, held Hurley down, sexually assaulted her and slit her throat, the prosecutor said.

According to Bates, Billingsley doused the couple and the apartment with accelerant and set it on fire. Both survived.

Six days later, LaPere was reported missing before police found her body along with a brick on the roof of her Mount Vernon home.

Surveillance footage showed the co-founder of startup EcoMap Technologies getting up from the lobby couch at 10:32 p.m. and letting Billingsley in before they got into the elevator together.

At 11:08 p.m., Billingsley was seen leaving the building.

The coroner ruled that it was manslaughter by strangulation and blunt force trauma.

LaPere was named to Forbes' 30 Under 30 list for his social influence.

She started her eco-business from her dorm room at Johns Hopkins University.

Hurley and LaPere's family joined Bates at a press conference on Friday to announce the guilty pleas and life sentences.

“Every day I have flashbacks and triggers that cause terrible anxiety, pain and stress,” Hurley is said to have said.

“I will never be the same person again.”

“Without God and my will to live, I would not be standing here today,” she said.