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The Orange County jury that convicted Daniel Wozniak, 31, will now
decide whether he should face the death penalty for the murders,
court records show.
Wozniak had sought to steal thousands of dollars from his neighbor,
Army veteran Samuel Herr, 26, when he lured him from his Costa Mesa
home in 2010 and fatally shot him, cutting off his head and arm and
dumping the body parts in a Long Beach park, the Orange County
Register reported.
Hours after Wozniak killed Herr, he performed in a musical and a
local community theater, the newspaper said.
In an attempt to cover up the murder, prosecutors said Wozniak shot
and killed Herr's friend, Juri Kibuishi, 23, hoping police would
believe the Army veteran had acted in a jealous rage and then fled,
the Register said.
During the trial, prosecutors said Wozniak was deeply in debt and
trying to fund his wedding when he targeted Herr, who had $62,000
saved up from his service in Afghanistan, the Los Angeles Times
reported.
Wozniak, who was represented by public defenders, had unsuccessfully
sought to get the possibility of a death sentence taken off the
table.
The penalty phase is set to begin Jan. 4, court documents said.
(Reporting by Victoria Cavaliere Editing by Jeremy Gaunt)
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