Guilty Pleas In Annapolis, Pasadena Murders

ANNAPOLIS, MD — A man facing trial for the grisly murders of two women has pleaded guilty for the 2016 killing of an Essex woman whose body was found in a wooded area in Annapolis and the slaying of a Brooklyn Park woman whose body was found in Pasadena in 2012, prosecutors say. Anne Arundel County authorities say Christopher Allen Scheibe, 29, of Calvert County, killed Holly Smith, 24, of Essex, whose body was found behind a Parole business district near Annapolis Mall in June 2016.

Scheibe faced charges of first- and second-degree murder and first- and second-degree assault in Smith’s death; she was stabbed multiple times. He pleaded guilty Wednesday to first-degree murder in her death.

He was also charged in the 2012 murder of Jessica Lee, 20, of Brooklyn Park. She was reported missing May 8, 2012, and was last seen in the 5700 block of Ritchie Highway in Brooklyn Park. In August 2012, Lee’s decapitated remains were found behind a Pasadena shopping center. In court Wednesday, he pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in Lee's death.

Scheibe was interviewed in 2016 and admitted to his involvement in both murders, prosecutors said.

"Mr. Scheibe preyed on innocent and vulnerable young women. His utter disregard for human life is reprehensible" said Anne Arundel County State's Attorney Wes Adams in a statement. "I am grateful to the Anne Arundel County Police Department for conducting an extensive and thorough investigation that produced the evidence we needed to bring Mr. Scheibe to justice for these senseless and vicious murders."

Scheibe faces up to life in prison for Smith's murder, and up to 30 years in prison for killing Lee. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 12.

Anne Arundel County and Maryland State Police took Scheibe into custody on June 2, 2016, in East New Market on the Eastern Shore and he reportedly confessed to homicide detectives that he killed Smith. He has ties to southern Maryland and on the Eastern Shore.

Prosecutors say surveillance footage shows Scheibe walking away from the scene of Smith's death. Smith’s remains were found in Parole behind Premier Fitness gym by a person walking in the area on May 3, 2016. The Chief Medical Examiner determined Smith had suffered 27 stabbing and cutting injuries; the body had been decomposing for several days before Smith's remains were found.

A vehicle with blood and DNA inside of it was found by police parked in the lot of the complex; it later was found to match blood from Smith and Scheibe. Authorities say the vehicle had been reported stolen from a Calvert County body shop on May 26. Video surveillance footage from several locations a day later showed Scheibe in the area where Smith's body was found. He was shown in the vehicle and on foot as he walked from the complex, leaving the vehicle and the victim behind.

Police said last summer that Scheibe had long been a person of interest in Lee's death. Her mostly skeletal remains were found Aug. 26, 2012, in woods off Ritchie Highway in Pasadena, behind what is now a Planet Fitness and was then an Ollie’s Bargain Outlet. Lee died from multiple stab wounds; DNA was used to identify the victim as Lee.

Police learned that the victim had last been seen in the company of Schiebe on May 8, 2012, and had not been seen since then.

As detectives investigated Smith's murder, they again asked Scheibe about Lee’s murder, and he admitted to killing her, authorities said. The second murder charge was filed Aug. 29, 2016.

Police said last year that they believe Scheibe may be involved in other violent crimes; he uses aliases and has often told people that he is with the U.S. Special Forces. Anyone with more information about Scheibe and other crimes is asked to call the county’s tipline at 410-222-4700.

Lisa Marie, who told Patch in 2012 that she was one of Lee's best friends, said Lee had a then 1-year-old daughter.

"The last time I talked to her was the day she went missing," Marie said in 2012. "She said she was going to a party, but I don't know what kind of party it is."
»Photo of Christopher Scheibe, courtesy of Anne Arundel County Police