Markoff Pleads Not Guilty In Craigslist Killing

A former Boston medical student pleaded not guilty Monday to charges he lured a masseuse he met through Craigslist to a Boston hotel, then bound her, beat her and shot her to death with a gun authorities say he later stashed in a hollowed-out medical textbook.

Philip Markoff firmly stated "not guilty" when asked how he pleaded to the seven charges including kidnapping, armed robbery and weapons violations, then stared straight ahead as prosecutors outlined their case during a brief arraignment in Suffolk Superior Court.

Markoff is charged in the April 14 shooting of Julissa Brisman, 25, of New York City, and the April 10 armed robbery of Trisha Leffler, a 29-year-old Las Vegas prostitute, at another posh Boston hotel. Authorities say he used anonymous e-mail addresses and prepaid cell phones to set up meetings with the women he met through Craigslist, where they had advertised in its "erotic services" category.

Prosecutors say Markoff left a trail linking him to the attacks including his fingerprints on the ties allegedly used to bind the women. They said he used someone else's ID - a New York man's license - in February at a gun shop in Mason, N.H., to buy the 9 mm weapon that killed Brisman.

Prosecutors say the gun allegedly used in the Craigslist killing case was purchased in New Hampshire in February.

Prosecutors say Markoff used another man's driver's license to buy the semiautomatic pistol. Boston-area District Attorney Dan Conley said that illustrates a longstanding problem of how easy it is to buy a gun in New Hampshire.

New Hampshire Attorney General Kelly Ayotte defended her state's public safety record. She said that unfortunately, killers in search of weapons know how to get them, legally or illegally.