Jurors convict man in Temple University student slaying
Carnations are piled beside a portrait of murder victim Jenna Burleigh after a memorial service at Temple University's Founder's Garden. (Emma Lee/WHYY)
Jurors in Philadelphia have convicted a man in the murder of a 22-year-old Temple University student.
The panel convicted 30-year-old Joshua Hupperterz on Thursday of first-degree murder and possession of an instrument of crime in the death of Jenna Burleigh. He earlier pleaded guilty to evidence-tampering and abuse of a corpse.
Prosecutors said Hupperterz killed Burleigh in his Philadelphia apartment in August 2017, moved her body to his mother’s suburban home in a plastic storage container, and later took the remains to his grandmother’s home in the Poconos, where they were found.
Defense attorney David Nenner suggested another man was responsible. But prosecutors said DNA evidence and the defendant’s actions following the slaying pointed to him as the killer.
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