Pava LaPere: Suspect arrested in killing of Baltimore tech CEO

Police hunting a suspect in the murder of a Baltimore, Maryland, tech CEO, have arrested a man after a days-long manhunt.

Pava LaPere, 26, founder of the startup EcoMap Technologies, was reported missing on Monday morning and found dead hours later.

Police detained convicted felon Jason Dean Billingsley early on Thursday.

They said it appears Ms LaPere was killed on Friday night and there was no sign of forced entry into her flat.

Her body was discovered at a central Baltimore apartment building with blunt-force trauma to her head, police said.

Investigators have previously said there was no indication Ms LaPere knew Billingsley, who was wanted on a first-degree murder warrant.

A Swat team surrounded the 32-year-old suspect 27 miles (43km) south of Baltimore at a train station in Bowie, Maryland, police told a news conference on Thursday morning.

Ms LaPere went to school at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, where she started the tech company at age 21.

She had been named on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list earlier this year.

During a Wednesday vigil, Ms LaPere's father, Frank LaPere, said his daughter was "the definition of daddy's little girl".

He recalled how they would exchange photos of their sunrise walks and thanked attendees "for loving our girl".

The suspect was also wanted in another case of attempted murder, rape and arson, on 19 September in Baltimore.

Before his arrest on Thursday, officials warned the public that he was armed and dangerous.

Billingsley was released from prison in October 2022 after serving nearly seven years for a first-degree sex offence.

He has been on Maryland's registered sex offender list since his release.

Police say they are examining other cases since October to see if Billingsley could be connected to any of them.

The suspect's mother, Scarlett Billingsley, texted him "to turn himself in because they're going to kill him", NBC News reported.

Scarlett Billingsley also told the network her son had visited her home briefly on Monday and showed her a gun.