Update: Local 3 has received an affidavit for Jason Chen following the transfer and booking in Silverdale.
We learn from the affidavit we have received that Jason Chen is being charged with the murder of Jasmine Pace. It added that a large amount of blood stains were found in her apartment along with the victim’s driver’s license, several credit cards and her abandoned vehicle.
A neighbor also told the victim’s family that they heard a loud commotion at the exact time the victim’s mother claimed Jasmine Pais shared her location with her via text using a pin drop.
Investigators say evidence at the scene shows that a violent physical altercation took place inside the apartment prior to the cleanup.
Back story:
Jason Chen, a suspect in the disappearance of Jasmine Pace, has been arrested by the Nolensville Police Department in a joint operation with the Chattanooga Police Department.
Chen was found Tuesday night at his family home in Williamson County and taken to the county jail.
During a news conference on Wednesday, Hamilton County District Attorney Coty Wamp said Chen would be charged with first-degree murder in Pace’s case.
Vamp states that enough evidence has been found in Chen’s apartment to identify him as a suspect. Wamp said that later discovered evidence gave him sufficient probable cause to charge him with Pace’s murder.
Paes had gone missing last Tuesday. Police said they believe Jasmine may have turned to Chen for comfort after a recent family death. He has said from the beginning that he believes she must have been with him.
He was last seen on surveillance camera video leaving his mother’s house. Late at night he sent his location via text message to his mother, which his family says is out of character.
They later found his car at the Signal View Apartments on Mountain Creek Road, from where his location had been sent that night.
Wamp said the investigation is ongoing and asked the public to share any information about Paes’ whereabouts.
Chen is being held without bond at the Silverdale Detention Center.
He is scheduled to appear in Hamilton County General Sessions Court on December 6.
NEW: A spokeswoman for Hamilton County District Attorney Coty Vamp says she will be involved @chattanoogaPD For a press conference at 1:00 pm to give an update on the Jasmine Paes case. @local3news pic.twitter.com/5sru8gkaIV
— Liam Collins Local 3 (@LiamLocal3) November 30, 2022
If you have any information regarding this case, please call the Chattanooga Police Department at 423-698-2525.
Stay tuned to the Local 3 News app for updates on this developing story.
Back story: The family of a woman who hasn’t been seen or heard from since Tuesday, November 22, needs your help to bring her home.
Jasmine Pace, 22, was last known to be at an apartment complex in Chattanooga’s Northshore, but her car was found several miles away at an apartment complex to which her family does not know she has any connection.
Her mother found her car at the Signal View Apartments on Mountain Creek Road.
have you seen him? @chattanoogaPD Looking for 22-year-old Jasmine Paes. Police say his car was found at the Signal View Apartments on Mountain Creek Road. He has not been seen or heard from since last Tuesday. @local3news pic.twitter.com/ZFLkASc89z
— Liam Collins Local 3 (@LiamLocal3) November 28, 2022
“We want her home,” said Bailey Putman, Jasmine’s childhood friend. “And we want her safe.”
An FBI spokeswoman said they are offering the Chattanooga Police Department assistance in the search, but a Chattanooga Police Department spokeswoman said the agency is not actively involved in the investigation.
Jasmine was last seen by her family on surveillance cameras leaving her mother’s house. His family believes that he may have decided to leave the city to mourn the recent death in the family.
But they knew something was wrong when he never showed up for Thanksgiving dinner.
“She’s the very opposite of him,” Putman said. “There’s not a day that goes by when they don’t hear from Jasmine, let alone an hour.”
Unwittingly at 2:18 a.m. Wednesday, Jasmine shared her location with her mother via text message, which Putman said was unlike her.
“For me, in my heart, by sending that place to her mom, her mom will understand what it means,” Putman said.
Police believe that she may have turned to a boyfriend whom she met on a dating app a few months back. He said that she can be with him now.
“Her phone hasn’t been active since Tuesday,” Putman said. “She has social media, but not on her phone device.”
Putman is referring to a Facebook post made on Jasmine’s account, but he doesn’t think Jasmine made them herself. The post included a revealing photo with the caption “Enjoying Thanksgiving with my baby.”
Putman said she would never post a private photo publicly. She also said that they know the photo is several years old because she has tattoos on her right shoulder and upper arm, but the tattoos are not visible in the photo.
Jasmine’s mother also received a text from Jasmine’s phone last week saying she was visiting a friend in South Carolina, also seen in the Facebook post. The friend has told the family that he had no plans to meet Jasmine and that she lives in Kentucky.
“Our main goal is to find Jasmine,” Putman said. “We believe he is in Chattanooga.”
If you have seen Jasmine or have information about where she may be, you are asked to call the Chattanooga Police Department at 423-643-7691 or call 911.