Murder of Sam Herr and Julie Kibuishi

Overview

Samuel Eliezer "Sam" Herr, a 26-year-old Afghanistan War veteran, and Juri "Julie" Kibuishi, a 23-year-old college student, were murdered in May 2010 in Costa Mesa, California, by Daniel Wozniak, Herr's neighbor and friend. Wozniak was later convicted of first-degree murder in both deaths.

The Killings

On May 21, 2010, Wozniak shot and killed Herr at a theater in Los Alamitos. Wozniak was deeply in debt and unemployed at the time, but was planning an expensive wedding and honeymoon. After learning that Herr had approximately $62,000 in savings from combat pay, Wozniak decided to kill him to obtain the money.

To misdirect investigators, Wozniak used Herr's phone to text Kibuishi, who had been tutoring Herr at Orange Coast College, luring her to Herr's apartment. There, Wozniak shot and killed her and staged the scene to suggest she had been sexually assaulted, in an effort to make it appear that Herr had assaulted and killed her before fleeing. That same evening, Wozniak performed in a local theater production of the musical Nine. He subsequently dismembered Herr's body, leaving the torso in the theater's attic.

Investigation

Authorities initially launched a manhunt for Herr, believing him responsible for Kibuishi's murder and assumed to be a fugitive. Wozniak came under suspicion after he instructed a 17-year-old, Wesley Freilich, to withdraw money from Herr's accounts. When police questioned the teenager, he disclosed that Wozniak had directed him to make the withdrawals. Wozniak was apprehended by U.S. Marshals at his bachelor party, two days before his scheduled wedding. After initially lying to investigators, he confessed and led police to the El Dorado Nature Center in Long Beach, where most of Herr's dismembered remains were recovered.

Prosecution and Related Charges

Following more than five years of court proceedings, Wozniak was tried and convicted on two counts of first-degree murder. He was sentenced to death in September 2016, prior to a subsequent moratorium on capital punishment in California. He was held at San Quentin State Prison until July 2021, when he was transferred to Salinas Valley State Prison under a state transfer program.

Wozniak's then-fiancée, Rachel Mae Buffett, was arrested in November 2012 and charged with three felony counts of accessory-after-the-fact, based on allegations that she repeatedly lied to investigators. In September 2018, she was convicted on two of those counts and, in November 2018, was sentenced to 32 months, minus time served and credit for good behavior. She was released from custody in 2019.

Coverage

The case has been the subject of extensive news and true-crime program coverage, including segments on Dr. Phil, Dateline NBC, 20/20, 48 Hours, and various true-crime podcasts.