A British woman who travelled from England to the United States allegedly paid a man she met online to torture and kill her before she was found stabbed to death in a shallow grave, according to court documents ahead of a murder trial scheduled for later this year. The victim,……
A British woman who travelled from England to the United States allegedly paid a man she met online to torture and kill her before she was found stabbed to death in a shallow grave, according to court documents ahead of a murder trial scheduled for later this year.
The victim, Sonia Exelby, a 32-year-old music tutor from Portsmouth, travelled to Florida after months of online contact with 53-year-old Dwain Hall, whom investigators said she met through a fetish website. Hall has been charged with kidnapping and first-degree murder and has pleaded not guilty.
According to a report by the UK-based Daily Mail, Hall could face the death penalty if he is convicted of the charges.
A Florida police report stated that investigators uncovered evidence suggesting Exelby travelled to the United States intending to meet “online individuals who would be willing to kill her violently”.
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Authorities allege that the pair’s online communications formed a key part of the investigation, with detectives examining messages and other evidence gathered before and after Exelby’s arrival in Florida.
The case is expected to proceed to trial later this year as prosecutors seek to prove Hall’s involvement in the alleged kidnapping and murder, while the defendant continues to deny the charges.
