Why did Daniel Wozniak kill Sam Herr? Details explored ahead of A Plan to Kill on Oxygen

Season 1 episode 10 of A Plan to Kill on Oxygen, titled Killer Friendship, will replay the tragic deaths of Sam Herr and Julie Kibuishi. As per CBS News, Sam and Julie were slain in May 2010 by former American community theatre actor Daniel Wozniak, who confessed to the double murders in 2010. Daniel killed Sam Herr for money and admitted the same to the detectives, according to the outlet.

"I killed Julie and I killed Sam...It was all just about the money, that was it," Daniel said.

The upcoming episode of A Plan to Kill, focusing on these double murders by Wozniak, will air on Oxygen on December 29, 2024, at 7 pm ET.

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Daniel Wonziak murdered Sam Herr for financial gain

As per reports by ABC News, Daniel Wozniak killed 26-year-old Afghanistan War veteran Sam Herr, who was his neighbor, on May 21, 2010. On the evening of May 21, The theatre actor lured Sam inside the Los Alamitos theater, pretending he needed his help to move something heavy. Wozniak shot Sam, who was helping him, twice in the head and left his body in the attic.

According to CBS News, he described how he shot Sam and told the detectives that:

"It was all just about the money, that was it... I shot him once and then he was still alive saying, I need help, I need help. Something hit me. It sounded—it felt like an electric shock.I reloaded and fired again."

After killing Sam, Wozniak stole all his cards and his cell phone. Later that night, he used the cell phone to invite Sam's friend, Julie Kibuishi, to the apartment, where he killed her in the same manner. He then tried to frame Sam for her murder by staging the crime scene.

The next day, Wozniak dismembered Sam's body and disposed of the parts around town, leaving his torso in the attic. A few days after Julie's murder, when the detectives were on the lookout for Sam, they traced down Wozniak instead. This was made possible by tracking Sam's card, which was used to withdraw cash from a nearby ATM and pay in a pizza parlor.

When Wozniak was interrogated, he recanted his statement several times. At one point, he claimed that Sam killed Julie Kibuishi in a drugged-up state and went on the run after the crime. After hours of interrogation and questioning, Wozniak finally confessed to Sam and Julie's murder and stated that he did it for the money.

Sam Herr was a reputed soldier who reportedly had $ 62,000 in his savings, which he had collected from his "combat pay," as per ABC News. Wozniak killed Sam to get access to his funds. Reportedly, the actor was without a job at the time of the murder and had an impending wedding and a honeymoon to pay for. He carried out the murder allegedly to impress his fiancee.

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Daniel Wonziank next killed Julie Kibuishi

After killing Sam Herr, he murdered Kibuishi next to carry out a story that Sam had killed her, after which he fled the scene to not get arrested. Kibuishi was found slain in Sam Herr's bedroom by the latter's father. Her pants were pulled down and cut, and there were F*ck You" and "All Yours" written across her T-shirt, as per Oxygen True Crime. She was also shot twice.

As per CBS News, Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas, who addressed the reporters, stated the same.

"How tragic was this murder plot? A greedy groom. The pursuit of ill-gotten gain, dismembers a young man and discards him like a piece of garbage," the DA said.

Wozniak was found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder on December 16, 2015, as per ABC News. In September 2016, he was sentenced to death and was housed at the San Quentin State Prison. He was later moved to Salinas Valley State Prison after he enrolled in the Condemned Inmate Transfer Pilot Program.

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Watch the upcoming episode of A Plan to Kill on Oxygen to learn more about this case. It airs on Oxygen on December 29, 2024, at 7 pm ET.