Sonia Exelby, a 32-year-old from Portsmouth, flew to the United States on October 10 to be violently killed by a man she met on a fetish website, but friends claim she had serious doubts before her death. Her body was discovered a week later in a shallow woodland grave in Marion County, Florida, after she failed to board her return flight.
Exelby, who friends said suffered from mental health issues, had been chatting with American Dwain Hall, 53, on a fetish website. Police allege that the conversation turned to bondage, suicide, and Exelby's desire to have someone kill her. Hall is accused of picking her up from the airport and driving her to an Airbnb cabin in Reddick.
He has been charged with kidnapping and first-degree murder but denies the charges. An affidavit stated that Exelby left evidence on her computer indicating she was suicidal and travelling to the US to be sexually abused, tortured, and possibly murdered. Hall reportedly admitted discussing these topics with her.
In police interviews, Hall claimed he did not want to have sex with Exelby because he would feel bad about his wife, Ginger Stein, with whom he has been in a relationship since 2014. However, he said they did have sex multiple times, describing it as 'vanilla'. He also claimed Exelby was suicidal and wanted to be killed, stating, 'she's happy now because she got what she wanted.'
Bank records and surveillance footage allegedly showed Hall using Exelby's credit cards after her death. When arrested on October 17, he initially denied knowing her but later admitted picking her up. An autopsy revealed she died from four stab wounds.
