Florida authorities have charged a 53-year-old man in the death of Sonia Exelby, a British woman whose disappearance drew international concern after investigators uncovered signs she had traveled to the United States in a state of profound distress and vulnerability.
Exelby, 46, was reported missing on Oct. 13 when she failed to board her flight home to Portsmouth, England. Loved ones said at the time that she was struggling with her mental health and may have placed herself in danger. Days later, her remains were discovered in Marion Oaks, Florida. State investigators say she was the victim of homicide.
Court documents paint a picture of a woman who had been deeply unwell in the months leading up to her trip. British investigators searching her computer found writings suggesting she was suicidal and believed she was traveling to America to be sexually abused, tortured, or even killed. In a letter she left behind, Exelby expressed fear she might be “mutilated and disabled for the rest of my life” if she “manage[d] to get to him.” The affidavit suggests she had connected online with several people in the United States who were aware of her intentions.
Friends and family in the U.K. posted pleas for help on social media, describing Exelby as “vulnerable” and in crisis. They believed she arranged to meet someone in Florida and warned that she had placed herself in an “extremely vulnerable situation.”
Investigators eventually identified Dwain Hall as the man Exelby appeared to have met in the U.S. They traced him through attempted transfers from her bank account beginning days before she disappeared. When questioned by detectives on Oct. 17, Hall gave inconsistent answers before acknowledging that he had met Exelby and had been involved in conversations about suicide and violence.
By then, according to the affidavit, Exelby may have been trying to escape. In a Discord message to a friend, she reported that a man — she did not name him — was holding her against her will. “He made it clear there was no way out unless I shoot him,” she wrote. “I was questioning it last night. I can’t kill anyone.” She also wrote that she had been made to record three “disclaimer” videos and write a letter to her family — actions she said the man found “funny.”
Investigators later recovered a cellphone video that allegedly shows Hall prompting Exelby to answer questions about how she wanted to die. According to the affidavit, she answered but hesitated repeatedly — a detail detectives highlighted in their report.
Hall has been charged with murder and kidnapping, in addition to fraud-related charges filed earlier in the investigation. He has pleaded not guilty.
