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Murder of Bobby Kent

SOLVED1993Weston, Florida (construction site)3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026

Documents violence · sexual violence — written to inform, not to shock.

Illustrative

Bobby Kent (born Bobby Khayam on May 12, 1973) was the son of Iranian immigrants Fred and Farah Kent and attended South Broward High School in Hollywood, Florida. He had known Martin "Marty" Puccio Jr. since third grade, and the two remained close as teenagers despite what a prosecutor later described as Kent's bullying treatment of Puccio. Kent and Puccio had also collaborated on amateur pornographic films that Kent unsuccessfully tried to sell to local shops.

In early 1993, Puccio began dating Lisa Connelly, who grew frustrated with Kent's influence over Puccio and his history of mistreating him. Connelly attempted to distract Kent by introducing him to her friend Alice Willis, but the relationship ended after Willis said Kent was abusive. By June 1993, Connelly — who was pregnant by Puccio — had become determined to have Kent killed, and Willis said Kent raped her the night before the murder. On July 13, 1993, Connelly and Willis, joined by Donald Semenec and Heather Swallers, made an unsuccessful attempt to lure Kent to a construction site and kill him.

The following night, July 14, 1993, the group — now including Derek Dzvirko and a man recruited as a hired killer, Derek Kaufman — finalized plans at Puccio's house. Puccio convinced Kent to join them, and around 11:30 p.m. the group drove him to a Weston construction site. There, while Willis and Swallers distracted Kent, Semenec stabbed him in the neck, Puccio stabbed him repeatedly and slit his throat, and Kaufman delivered a fatal blow with a baseball bat. The group dumped Kent's body near a marsh, reportedly expecting it would be consumed by alligators.

In the days after the killing, several of the conspirators confessed to family members. Connelly's mother and Dzvirko's mother contacted a relative with police connections, which led to Detective Frank Ilarraza of the Broward County Sheriff's Office. Dzvirko cooperated fully and led police to Kent's body.

All seven participants were prosecuted. Puccio and Kaufman were convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy; Puccio was initially sentenced to death in August 1995, but the Supreme Court of Florida vacated the sentence in 1997 due to mitigating factors, and he was resentenced to life in prison. Kaufman received life without parole for 25 years plus a consecutive 30-year conspiracy sentence. Semenec was convicted of second-degree murder but given a life sentence. Connelly and Willis were both convicted of second-degree murder and related conspiracy charges, receiving reduced sentences on appeal, and were released in 2004 and 2001 respectively after serving under a decade each. Dzvirko and Swallers pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and conspiracy, cooperated with authorities, and were released in 1999 and 1998 respectively after serving shorter sentences.

The case became the basis for Jim Schutze's 1997 book "Bully: A True Story of High School Revenge" and the 2001 film "Bully," directed by Larry Clark.

Key facts

Victims
Bobby Kent
Date
1993
Location
Weston, Florida (construction site)
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 1973-05-12

    Bobby Kent (né Khayam) is born.

  2. 1993-01

    Martin Puccio begins dating Lisa Connelly.

  3. 1993-06

    Puccio confides to Connelly about years of abuse by Kent; Connelly begins discussing killing Kent.

  4. 1993-07-13

    First failed attempt to lure and kill Kent at a Weston construction site; group later meets self-proclaimed hitman Derek Kaufman.

  5. 1993-07-14

    Seven conspirators finalize plans at Puccio's house and kill Bobby Kent at a construction site in Weston, Florida; his body is dumped near a marsh.

  6. 1995-05

    Donald Semenec, Derek Dzvirko, and Heather Swallers are sentenced.

  7. 1995-06

    Derek Kaufman is sentenced to life without parole for 25 years plus a consecutive 30-year term.

  8. 1995-07

    Lisa Connelly is sentenced to a life-equivalent term plus a concurrent 5-year sentence.

  9. 1995-08

    Martin Puccio is sentenced to death by electrocution plus a concurrent 30-year sentence.

  10. 1997

    Supreme Court of Florida vacates Puccio's death sentence; he is resentenced to life in prison.

  11. 1998

    Heather Swallers is released from prison; Connelly's sentence is reduced on appeal to 22 years.

  12. 1999-10

    Derek Dzvirko is released from prison.

  13. 2001-09

    Alice Willis is released from prison.

  14. 2004-02

    Lisa Connelly is released from prison.

Best coverage

No approved coverage links are attached yet.

People

  • Frank Ilarraza

    LAW ENFORCEMENT

    Broward County Sheriff's Office detective who received Derek Dzvirko's confession and was led to Kent's body.

    citation on file

  • Lisa Connelly

    CONVICTED

    Convicted of second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit aggravated battery; sentence reduced on appeal to 22 years, released February 2004.

    citation on file

  • Martin Joseph Puccio Jr.

    CONVICTED

    Convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder; originally sentenced to death, resentenced to life in prison in 1997.

    citation on file

  • Donald Semenec

    CONVICTED

    Convicted of second-degree murder; given a life sentence in May 1995.

    citation on file

  • Heather Swallers

    CONVICTED

    Pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder; sentenced to 7 years, released February 1998.

    citation on file

  • Derek Kaufman

    CONVICTED

    Convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder; sentenced to life without parole for 25 years plus a consecutive 30-year term in June 1995.

    citation on file

  • Bobby Kent

    VICTIM

    20-year-old man killed on July 14, 1993, in Weston, Florida.

    citation on file

  • Alice Willis

    CONVICTED

    Convicted of second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder; sentence reduced on appeal to 17 years, released September 2001.

    citation on file

  • Derek Dzvirko

    CONVICTED

    Pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder; sentenced to 11 years, released October 1999.

    citation on file

Places

Weston, Florida (construction site)

26.1003, -80.3997

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
Bobby Kent, a 20-year-old South Florida man, was lured to a construction site in Weston, Florida, and killed by seven acquaintances, including his childhood friend Martin Puccio, on July 14, 1993. All seven were convicted or pleaded guilty; the case later inspired the book and film "Bully."
Where did the murder happen?
Weston, Florida (construction site).
Who was convicted?
Lisa Connelly (Convicted of second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit aggravated battery; sentence reduced on appeal to 22 years, released February 2004.), Martin Joseph Puccio Jr. (Convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder; originally sentenced to death, resentenced to life in prison in 1997.), Donald Semenec (Convicted of second-degree murder; given a life sentence in May 1995.), Heather Swallers (Pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder; sentenced to 7 years, released February 1998.), Derek Kaufman (Convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder; sentenced to life without parole for 25 years plus a consecutive 30-year term in June 1995.), Alice Willis (Convicted of second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder; sentence reduced on appeal to 17 years, released September 2001.), and Derek Dzvirko (Pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder; sentenced to 11 years, released October 1999.).
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved.

Sources

  1. Murder of Bobby Kentwikipedia · Wikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. Contemporaneous coverage — Los Angeles Timesnews · Los Angeles Times · 2026-07-07
  3. Contemporaneous coverage — dc.state.fl.usnews · dc.state.fl.us · 2026-07-07
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