The family of a British woman who travelled to the United States and was allegedly killed by a man she met on a fetish website has paid tribute to “a truly beautiful person.” Sonia Exelby, 32, from Portsmouth, died in Florida on October 17 last year after meeting Dwain Hall, 54, a pagan worshipper she had been communicating with for two years.
In a statement, her family said: “Sonia was a truly beautiful person, inside and out. She had the gentlest soul - so gentle that she chose to become vegan because she couldn’t bear the thought of any animal suffering. She was incredibly talented, could play the piano effortlessly, and had the voice of an angel. Being around her felt special.”
Ms Exelby is understood to have created an account on Motherless.com, a hardcore fetish pornography website shut down by Dutch authorities earlier this year. She had discussed the site’s sadistic use by men to lure women into harm with her sisters, vowing to confront those exploiting vulnerable users. However, her family was unaware she had been sharing violent and suicidal fantasies with others on the site.
Detectives found evidence on her computer indicating she was “suicidal and travelling to the US to be possibly sexually abused, tortured and murdered”. In footage filmed by Mr Hall, Ms Exelby appeared dishevelled with bruises, stating she wished to die by stabbing. Messages sent on Discord in her final moments revealed doubts, including a message saying he had shown her how to use a gun and made it clear “there was no way out unless I shoot him”.
Mr Hall was arrested on charges of first-degree murder and kidnapping by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, having already been detained over the alleged fraudulent use of Ms Exelby’s credit cards.
