iradiophilly | News - Exterminator, Jason Smith, Charged in Murder of CHOP Pediatrician Melissa Ketunuti after Confession

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Exterminator, Jason Smith, Charged in Murder of CHOP Pediatrician Melissa Ketunuti after Confession

by: iradioal - Philadelphia, PA
started: 01/24/13 5:30 pm | updated: 01/24/13 5:30 pm

Philadelphia Police have charged a 36-year-old Levittown, PA man with the murder of a 35-year-old Center City woman on Monday afternoon. They say an argument between the Bucks County exterminator and the CHOP pediatrician led to the gruesome crime inside her home on the 1700 block of Naudain Street. Police have identified the suspect as Jason Smith. He was arrested last night at his home on Crescent Lane in the Crabtree section of Levittown. After questioning him overnight he confessed to the murder and provided authorities with a detailed statement. This morning he was charged with the murder of Dr. Melissa Ketunuti who was found bound and ablaze in the basement of her row home by her hired dogwalker.

Smith was hired to take care of a pest problem at Ketunuti's home. While performing the extermination the two got into some kind of an argument. Smith felt he was being disrespected in some manner. He then struck Ketunuti before strangling her to death with a rope. He bound her hands and feet and set her body on fire to hide any evidence.

Police were able to use video surveillance from a nearby coffee shop and other neighborhood angles that showed Smith entering and leaving Ketunuti's house during the timeframe they believe the murder occurred. They used the doctor's personal records to show she had an appointment with an exterminator at the time and traced Smith's phone number. Investigators searched his home shared by his girlfriend, their daughter, and her parents. They also towed his truck searching for additional evidence.

Smith has not had any previous run-ins with the law. He has been charged with murder, abuse of corpse, arson, and risking a catastrophe.

SEE ALSO:CHOP Doctor Murder Suspect Charged
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SEE ALSO: CHOP Doctor Murderer Still Unknown
SEE ALSO: CHOP Pediatrician Murdered and Burned
SEE ALSO: CHOP Pediatrician Burned to Death

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