A man who repeatedly messaged and phoned his girlfriend and another couple that he was on his way to harm them was found guilty of multiple charges Friday, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.
Daniel Paul Sansone, 26, from New Hampshire, was found guilty Friday of 3 counts of Aggravated Stalking, 3 counts of Written Threats to Kill or do Bodily Injury, and 1 count of Domestic Battery. A jury deliberated 8 minutes before returning its verdict. Circuit Court Judge Shonna Young Gay set sentencing for April 10.
Sansone was arrested July 21, 2024, by Bay County Sheriff’s Office deputies after his girlfriend called to report he had battered her, left the residence where they were staying with another couple, and was claiming to be on his way back to cause them harm if anyone interfered.
Prosecutor Morgan McAfee called four witnesses and showed jurors evidence that included some of the threatening messages the defendant was sending his girlfriend and the other couple as he warned them he was headed back to the home.
“I will 100 percent kill her,” McAfee quoted from one of the defendant’s messages that night. “That was one of the many messages that Daniel Sansone sent as he committed the crimes of aggravated stalking and written threats.”
Testimony proved the defendant and the victim were a long-time couple who had traveled here from New Hampshire. They met a woman and her fiancée and the four decided to hang out at their home. They invited the defendant and his girlfriend, who were living out of their car, to stay the night.
The victim testified that she and the defendant had an argument the first day while driving down the beach and he threw her phone at the window and hit her. The next day, she said, he suddenly decided he wanted to leave. He tried to force her to go with him, but she broke free from him by climbing out the car window and he took the car and all their belongings.
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The defendant then began what would be an hour-long back-and-forth Snapchat messages between him, his girlfriend, the local woman and her fiancée. The victim wanted her belongings back, but the defendant repeatedly threatened them, at one point saying it was ironic that the bullets he had were paid for with his girlfriend’s money account.
He warned others to stay out of his way, or they would become “collateral damage.”
“They began to become afraid, concerned for their safety,” McAfee said. “This man knows where they are, knows where they live. They end up going to the Callaway Bay County Sheriff’s Office Substation out of fear so that would have somewhere to be safe and where someone could help them.”
As deputies flooded the area searching for the defendant, the victims let him know they had called law enforcement, and he said that was fine.
“I want this to blow up,” he messaged. “And I want to drag everyone down with me. You’re doing what I want. I want to get shot by the cops tonight.”
He also said he meant what he said in the previous messages.
“There’s no veiled threat,” he wrote. “I will 100% kill her.”
Deputies spotted the defendant’s car and took him into custody.
The victim said her life changed that night and she was convinced he was going to kill her.
“It still affects me to this day and I don’t think it’s ever going to stop,” she testified. “I keep my life very private now … I’m afraid to leave the house, scared for my son, afraid to do the things that normal people do.”
Basford thanked the Bay County Sheriff’s Office for its swift work in apprehending the defendant before anyone was harmed.
For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.