Family of mom murdered in ritzy DC suburb decades ago gets justice as perp nobody expected pleads guilty

A slayer cipher expected has pleaded blameworthy successful the 2001 execution of a Chevy Chase, Maryland, mother.

Defendant Eugene Gligor, 45, of Washington, D.C., walked escaped done the nation's superior for much than 20 years earlier his DNA linked him to then-50-year-old Leslie Preer's execution successful 2001.

Preer's daughter, Lauren Preer, told FOX 5 D.C. that she dated the fishy erstwhile they were some 15 years old. She was 24 erstwhile her parent was killed.

Montgomery County authorities linked DNA recovered beneath Preer's fingernails astatine the clip of her execution to Gligor's "distant comparative from Romania" who had voluntarily submitted her DNA to an online database, yet starring authorities straight to him past year, Montgomery County State's Attorney John McCarthy said during a Wednesday property conference. 

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Defendant Eugene Gligor, 45, of Washington, D.C., walked escaped done the nation's superior for much than 20 years earlier his DNA linked him to then-50-year-old Leslie Preer's execution successful 2001. (Montgomery County State's Attorney)

Gligor had lived successful the D.C. country since committing the gruesome transgression immoderate 24 years ago. Fox News Digital has reached retired to his lawyer for comment.

"Lauren, her family, and friends person waited 24 years to yet get closure and justness for this horrific transgression that tore her household apart," household lawyer Benjamin Kurtz told Fox News Digital. "The information that it turned retired to beryllium idiosyncratic they allowed successful their location with unfastened arms, conscionable makes it that overmuch harder to understand."

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Kurtz added that "Lauren has been fixed a consciousness of bid knowing that her begetter has yet been vindicated of immoderate wrongdoing, adjacent if aft his death, and she feels helium tin yet remainder successful bid with the cognition her slayer has been caught."

She besides "wanted to explicit her gratitude to the Montgomery County Police Department who ne'er stopped trying to get justness for her household and to the State’s Attorney’s Office for their efforts of securing a blameworthy plea from Leslie’s murderer."

"Lastly, portion the blameworthy plea volition ne'er bring backmost her mother, oregon make immoderate of the moments she ne'er got to acquisition owed to losing her astatine specified a young age, she and her household tin yet person immoderate closure to this horrific nonaccomplishment and effort to commencement the healing process," Kurtz said. "She wanted to explicit her sincere appreciation to each of her household and friends for the emotion and enactment implicit the years and decades and during the past twelvemonth waiting for a conviction."

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Preer's brag recovered her dormant successful the 2nd communicative of her Chevy Chase location connected May 2, 2001, aft she did not amusement up for enactment that time and ruled her decease a homicide. There was humor each implicit the house. (Montgomery County State's Attorney)

Preer's brag recovered her dormant successful the 2nd communicative of her Chevy Chase location connected May 2, 2001, aft she did not amusement up for enactment that day. Her decease was ruled a homicide. There was humor each implicit the house, McCarthy said.

She died of blunt unit trauma and strangulation.

In 2022, constabulary submitted DNA collected from the transgression country to a laboratory for forensic familial genealogical DNA investigation and aboriginal identified Gligor arsenic a imaginable suspect.

McCarthy called Preer's lawsuit "historic" during a May 7 property conference, saying it was the archetypal clip familial DNA was utilized successful a cold-case execution successful the county.

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"This was fantabulous constabulary enactment that took spot for implicit 2 decades," erstwhile Washington, D.C., homicide detective Ted Williams told Fox News Digital. "This is however science, familial DNA, was capable to assistance instrumentality enforcement drawback a idiosyncratic who felt that they had committed the crime.… The information that the DNA that was recovered nether [Preer's] fingernails was preserved each of those years and was aboriginal utilized to way down Mr. Gligor – helium would person gotten distant with murder, absent having this… near-exact science, and that is familial DNA."

"[H]e would person gotten distant with murder."

Authorities obtained a illustration of Gligor's DNA by staging a fake 2nd information screening astatine Dulles International Airport. They escorted the then-suspect into a room, wherever determination were respective h2o bottles. Gligor drank 1 h2o vessel and threw it distant earlier leaving the room, according to tribunal filings obtained by The Washington Post.

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John McCarthy, speaking connected Lauren Preer's behalf during the Wednesday property conference, remembered Leslie Preer arsenic a "spectacular, loving, fantastic person." (Facebook)

"There are times, unfortunately, erstwhile the grounds that is gathered astatine a transgression country does not pb successful immoderate 1 circumstantial direction," Williams said. "I americium definite that astatine the aboriginal stages of the investigation, the investigators were looking astatine anybody they believed whitethorn precise good person been progressive with this murder, but [Gligor] did not travel up connected their radar screen. That happens successful execution cases each the time… and astatine immoderate signifier oregon another, the improvement of the technological evidence… is thing oregon 2 that instrumentality enforcement present person successful their possession to spell backmost many, galore years."

Gligor worked astatine a real-estate steadfast and was known arsenic a "zen" and affable person, the Post reported past year, erstwhile helium was named arsenic a suspect.

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Court records and accounts from those who knew him obtained by the Post amusement that helium was a mischievous high-schooler with immoderate past of substance abuse. His parents divorced portion helium and Lauren were dating successful precocious school, and helium did not instrumentality the separation well. He was besides expelled from boarding school, the Post reported.

Following Preer's death, erstwhile friends and household offered enactment to Lauren, Gligor seemingly drove cross-country to sojourn a person successful Oregon portion Lauren was grieving. That person told the Post that Gligor didn't archer him helium was coming to Oregon until helium was already connected his way.

Lauren recalled a infinitesimal years earlier her mother's murder, erstwhile she and Gligor were inactive dating, erstwhile Gligor was accused of assaulting a pistillate connected a motorcycle way betwixt the 2 then-teenagers' houses. Lauren told the Post she went to the constabulary presumption with a friend, insisting to officers that Gligor was innocent.

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"We some said, determination is nary mode Eugene would person done this," Preer recalled to the Post.

Authorities person not shared immoderate benignant of motive down Preer's murder. McCarthy said it volition beryllium up to the suspect to stock what the motive was successful his determination to termination Preer, adding aboriginal that determination was nary grounds to suggest the execution was "premeditated," and Preer had nary transgression record.

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McCarthy, speaking connected Lauren's behalf during the Wednesday property conference, remembered Preer arsenic a "spectacular, loving, fantastic person."

Gligor faces up to 30 years successful prison, which was the maximum punishment for second-degree execution successful 2001 erstwhile the incidental occurred. A sentencing proceeding is scheduled for Aug. 28, 2025, astatine 9 a.m.