A Philadelphia man is now charged with homicide after he allegedly beat a woman to death using an iron pipe inside an Old City office building on Wednesday afternoon, police said.
Jeffery Stepien, 48, was arrested yesterday afternoon when he was apprehended by responding police officers at the Regus building, an office rental property along the 300 block of Chestnut Street.
The victim was identified Thursday as 31-year-old Samantha Maag, of Blenheim, New Jersey in Camden County.
According to investigators, Maag was assaulted in a suite on the building's eighth floor around 2:15 p.m., when she was approached from behind at a receptionist desk, police said. Stepien allegedly struck Maag in the head at least five times, causing severe head injuries.
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Approximately 20 911 calls were placed in the aftermath of the beating, Philadelphia Police chief inspector Scott Small said.
Maag was transported to Jefferson Hospital, where she was pronounced dead around 3:15 p.m.
Stepien was taken into custody when police encountered him getting off an elevator. He was covered in blood and carrying two pipes that authorities say had been used in the attack.
Stepien had been renting office space on the floor where the attack occurred, according to investigators.
The motive in the fatal attack is still under investigation, but authorities believe the victim and suspect may have had a past altercation.
"We know that they know each other," Small said. "We believe there may have been some arguments or problems in the past, however, we are still working on that information."