Police: Man Arrested After Allegedly Admitting To Tying Up, Killing Missing Bethel Park Woman
BETHEL PARK (KDKA) -- Bethel Park Police have filed charges against a man in connection with the disappearance of a young woman who hasn't been seen in two months.
Police say 33-year-old Jaime Rae Feden was last seen two months ago on Sept. 15.
She is described as being 4-feet-1-inch tall, weighs 75 pounds and has brown eyes and hair.
Bethel Park Police Chief Timothy O'Connor says John Chapman, 39, is facing counts of kidnapping, criminal use of communication facility and obstructing administration of law.
He was arraigned this afternoon.
"She was a nice girl, very low-key, not hyper or anything," one of Feden's neighbors said. "She just wanted to be friendly with people."
According to the criminal complaint, police interviewed Chapman in connection to Feden's disappearance. The criminal complaint identifies Chapman as Feden's boyfriend and says she has a "tumultuous" past with him.
"A couple of other neighbors in our building said they heard arguing at different times, but I never experienced it first hand but he was a little odd," neighbor Lane Clark said.
In an interview with police, Chapman allegedly told them that sometime in September, he drove from Bethel Park to Las Vegas, leading Feden to believe the purpose of the trip was a vacation with the "potential of acquiring residence" in Las Vegas.
Happening now: Crime scene investigators are still on scene at Jamie Feden's home in Bethel Park gathering evidence. @KDKA pic.twitter.com/UlOZ2VJfFc
— Amy Wadas (@AmyWadas) November 15, 2019
Police say Chapman's real motivation was to murder Feden during this trip.
Champan is accused of convincing Feden to drive to the desert. Once out there, police say Chapman admitted to using zip ties to bind Feden's hands and feet before tying her to a signpost.
He then allegedly told police he put duct tape over her mouth and nose, suffocating her.
UPDATE: Regarding the missing persons case, a John Matthew Chapman, age 39, has been taken into custody and is being...
Posted by Bethel Park Police Department on Friday, November 15, 2019
MISSING PERSON: Jaime Rae Feden. Please contact us if recently seen.
Posted by Bethel Park Police Department on Thursday, November 14, 2019
After talking to Chapman, a detective contacted the Clark County Nevada Coroners Office, which said they did find a dead, unidentified woman on Oct. 5. They say the description matches Feden's description and there is "sufficient evidence" to believe Feden is the unidentified woman.
However, Chapman is not being charged with homicide at this time. Police say they are still "actively" working to find Feden.
Crime scene investigators were going in and out of her home, looking for evidence.
WATCH: KDKA's Pam Surano reports live from Bethel Park.
"First we have to locate Jamie -- if she is in fact dead and if he is in fact telling the truth on this matter," said Chief O'Connor.
Police say they are still "actively" working to find Feden.
"Finding a body, you're going to have to do your due diligence and make sure it's the exact person," said Chief O'Connor.
"So until we receive actual confirmation that they have found her, you know there's always a possibility that she's still alive somewhere out there and we'd like to bring her home."
And until police receive that confirmation, no homicide charges have been filed yet.
Anyone with information on the case is asked to call Bethel Park Police at 412-833-2000.
Stay with KDKA for Amy Wadas' full report on this developing story.