Tech CEO, 26, Named on Forbes 30 Under 30 List Found Slain in Her Baltimore Apartment

A warrant has been issued for a suspect in the death of Pava LaPere

Baltimore police are searching for a suspect in the murder of a tech company CEO who was found dead in her apartment Monday morning.

At a press conference Tuesday, police said they issued a warrant for the arrest of 32-year-old Jason Dean Billingsley in connection with the death of Pava LaPere, the 26-year-old founder and CEO of EcoMap Technologies.

In a statement obtained by PEOPLE from the Baltimore Police Department, Billingsley is wanted for alleged first-degree murder.

"BPD’s Special Investigations Section is working to determine potential connections to Billingsley and other cases," the statement added.

“This individual will kill, and he will rape,” acting police commissioner Richard Worley said at the press conference. “He will do anything he can to cause harm.”

LaPere was found dead with signs of blunt-force trauma in her Mount Vernon apartment building Monday around 11:30 a.m., police said. The Johns Hopkins University graduate had been reported missing prior to her death, according to authorities.

Police said they don't believe Billingsley knew the victim. 

In a statement on Facebook, EcoMap Technologies wrote that LaPere “was not only the visionary force behind EcoMap but was also a deeply compassionate and dedicated leader.

“Her untiring commitment to our company, to Baltimore, to amplifying the critical work of ecosystems across the country, and to building a deeply inclusive culture as a leader, friend and partner set a standard for leadership, and her legacy will live on through the work we continue to do."

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LaPere was featured on Forbes' 30 Under 30 list for social impact in 2023.

According to Forbes, her clients included The Aspen Institute, Meta, the WXR Fund, and T. Rowe Price Foundation.

"She epitomized what it was to be a dreamer,” RareBreed Ventures managing partner McKeever Conwell, who knew LaPere, told WJZ News. “What it was to be an entrepreneur. She's the type of woman I would want to be a mentor to my daughter."

Billingsley had been arrested in 2013, 2011 and 2009 for multiple charges including "sex offense, 2^nd degree assault charges and robbery," according to the BPD's statement.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Baltimore Police Department at 410-396-2100 or Metro Crime Stoppers at 1-866-7LOCKUP.

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