Roommates of the Florida teen who allegedly bludgeoned a 36-year-old man to death last week say the suspect was a Satanic male escort after an $800 debt.
Dillon O’Donnell, 18, was charged with first-degree murder Saturday in the death of William “Billy” Davis III, whose body was found in a pool of blood outside his home in Ormond Beach, Fla.
Dillon O’Donnell playing an online game.
On Monday, O’Donnell’s housemates told The Daytona Beach News-Journal newspaper that the teen had recently started working as a male escort and that Davis, who worked at a nearby Publix, was his second client. The friends said O’Donnell told them Davis was his “sugar daddy” and owed him $800.
The roommates, both brothers, had been sharing a house with O’Donnell for seven months. They said the teen routinely participated in devil-worshipping rituals and sometimes wore red and white contact lenses. They said he spray-painted the number 666 on the walls and on the side of the house. They also said they saw him waving a knife around the night before the murder.
Mr Davis, pictured, was O'Donnell's second client who the teenager saw as a 'sugar daddy'.
“He told me and my brother what he was going to do (kill Davis), but we thought he was kidding,” Richard DeForest, 21, told the News-Journal. “He was satanic so we thought it had something to do with that.”
After exchanging several text messages, O’Donnell and Davis made plans to hang out Thursday night. Davis reportedly picked O’Donnell up and brought him back to his house. An arrest report released Monday shows that early Friday morning, O’Donnell beat Davis with a concrete lawn lion before stabbing him several times with a folding knife.
In the yard at the end of a bloody trail, the ornament, a lion, was found drenched in blood.
The report also shows that investigators found O’Donnell’s picture on a dating app Davis had on his cell phone. The roommates said they think O'Donnell and Davis met and communicated via gay websites.
In the days before the murder, Mr Davis and O'Donnell had been texting each other, police said. The texting was initiated by Mr Davis, who at 10am on Thursday, asked O'Donnell if he could see him that evening. At around 10pm that night Mr Davis picked O'Donnell up from his home and took him back to his house.
Dillon O'Donnell's escort profile photo.
Sometime early Friday, Davis' aunt Shirley Davis noticed a man was trying to hard in the side yard of the property and called the police.
According to police, O'Donnell returned home after the murder. DeForest and his brother said they saw O'Donnell in his bedroom, wiping blood off his naked body. “When we saw him we didn’t even ask why he had blood on his arms,” DeForest told the newspaper. “I thought it was that devil-worship stuff.”
The scene of the crime.
In court, O'Donnell testified that he and Davis were new friends. They met on a dating app called Grinder. O'Donnell said he never wanted to hurt Davis and that Davis attacked him first after an argument about unwanted sexual advances. He said he was leaving when Davis pushed him down the stairs.
That's when O'Donnell said he stabbed Davis with a knife. "He kept hitting me on my stomach, on the back of my head. I managed to cover up my face like I always do when I'm in any type of fight." he said. "I'm sure he stumbled back and hit his head, and I was trying to defend myself."
Dillon O'Donnell shown just after being sentence to life in prison.
Prosecutor Ed Davis said during his opening statement that a forensic exam of O’Donnell’s phone showed he had researched how to quickly stab someone to death. While Davis was stabbed, the prosecutor said it was the blow to the head from a 50-pound lion statue that killed him.
In 2014, the then 20 year old Dillon O’Donnell was sentenced to life imprisonment. A jury took an hour Thursday to find O'Donnell, 20, guilty of first-degree murder in the slaying of Davis, 38. Circuit Judge Margaret Hudson then sentenced O'Donnell to life in prison.
Comments
SIlkxxx -Apr. 19, 2012 at 5:36pm
Dillon Is bisexual, But he WAS NOT! a satanist! He was an extremely close friend of mine and my ex boyfriend. No one saw him doing this coming. Hes was quiet, yet very sweet and out going. You needed help he was there for you. He always had a gold cross on around his neck and spoke of getting a cross tattoo on his arm. He was very caring but his new roommate ended up somehow getting him of the wrong path. And someones sexuality shouldn’t have a matter in anything. I myself, I am bisexual and there should be nothing wrong with that. We gays are more caring and opened minded then any of you could dream you were. And someones religion shouldn’t have anything to do with a thing as well because in some way or form it all leads back to having faith there’s a god out there. Also i myself never heard anything about him being a male escort. If anything He did it on his own and didn’t go through a company! The media also twisted Richards (roommates) words. The house in witch Dillon lived in is just a whole bunch of young kids. They like to play pranks and have a lot of fake blood in the house so that’s why the roommate didn’t care when they saw blood on Dillon. And considering he’s a teenager he was in there teenage eyes thought oh maybe he’s taking some weird facebook picture. Never believe all of what you hear and half of what you see. Be more open-,minded. He was a great kid that in the last 2 months was turned down a dark road that ended quickly with him do this.
SLOWBIDEN -Apr. 18, 2012 at 9:12am
Totally offended that this newspaper put this in the faith section.
JT Brooklyn, Apr 16, 2012
The YOUNG ain't always Pretty on the inside! ;)
hogorina -Apr. 12, 2012 at 4:10pm
“MODERATION OF A GENUINE DEMOCRAT
I live in a redone school bus, as a share cropper with eight children. Education from TV commercials. Wife is ex-pole dancer. Her father was a former dirt farmer. Both of us are Democrats. L.B. Johnson is our alter ego. Our ancestors came to America with hats in hands. We are born again mental slaves and trying to avoid the ghetto life.
Hobbies are fish’n and drinking. Medicaid saved our way of life with extra money for booze and idle time to enjoy the fruits of others. America is the land of milk and honey. Thank goodness for those tax payers of whom give us the good life, We love the Constitution and the rights to march for more bread from Uncle Sam.Further, two sons want to be lawyers and two want to be police officers. One daughter wants to be a firemen.One son wants to be a building inspector where the political graft is a Heaven on earth. Our motto is let the government do for us what we are too shifty-minded to do for ourselves My advice to the suckers of whom pay the taxes and fight wars is to study ruling systems via Machiavella’s ( PRINCE ). Bleed them for all it is worth. I belong to the global Interfaith movement and along with my peers.Religion and democracy is the going thing today. Imcidentally, my wife was expecting triplets before she hit the road.”
Dismayed Veteran -Apr. 11, 2012 at 3:10pm
“…a man was trying to hard in the side yard …” Is this a misprint or what really happened in the side yard?
jjkrkwood, Apr 11, 2012
The kid was kind of cute and had he not been insane might have made it in the work/world of escorting.
BobtheMoronsp -Apr. 11, 2012 at 9:32am
When you are a genetic dead end, it is natural to hate yourself and everyone like you. The futility of living weighs heavily on the ‘people’. Some channel their energy in to positive things, others disintegrate into insanity in one form or another. Being a genetic dead end must really suck.
mikee1 -Apr. 11, 2012 at 9:02am
Both are big DUMMYCRAPS. You see, in order to be a dummycrap today, you have to be a NEO-SATANIST, COMMUNIST, who supports all things PERVERSE. OR you have to be so stupid that you listen to them and are duped by them in your FOOLERY. iF THE dummycraps are not taken out of power in this country, the UNITED STATES will soon FALL.
[Suspended User] -Apr. 11, 2012 at 3:27am
the only people dumber than atheists are devil worshipers. (And their roommates.)
duke37, Apr 10, 2012
Does he kiss? I sure hope the first client, the one who wasn't killed, writes a FULL review with all the details..
FreedomWitness -Apr. 10, 2012 at 10:22pm
Imagine in some states these two could have gotten married and adopted a child. Wouldn’t that have been great! Man are we diving to the bottom of the cesspool at an alarming rate.
lukerw -Apr. 11, 2012 at 4:03am
Water finds it’s own level… yawn!
progressiveslayer -Apr. 10, 2012 at 6:58pm
The elder rump rider of boys is dead and the younger rump rider will wish he’s dead after some hard prison time.
[Suspended User] -Apr. 10, 2012 at 6:02pm
People like getting naked in times like this both ways.
NancyBee -Apr. 10, 2012 at 8:35pm
The escort company did a terrible job checking ths guy out!!
*
p.s. RIP: Satoru Iwata. ** David Ehrenstein, Hi. Absolutely, about the Padgett and Ashbery. They're both exquisite. Thank you for your faves. I'll try to see the movies I haven't, and I want to read Bill's book! I still haven't seen Marjorie's doc. I really need to. I'm glad to hear that I come off okay. Thank you a lot for the report. ** Cobaltfram, Hi there, John. Oh, I'm fine. My fucked up back did its occasional number on me, but I'm A-okay now. Yeah, I have an apartment in the lower Marais. I like it a lot. I'm mostly writing a film script right now, text-wise, and next is a TV pilot, but I'm dying to get back into my novel, and I will very soon. Your talk about your novel-in-process is exciting, of course. I'm high-fiving your strategy. Uh, no, I haven't done anything with translating Death Grips' thing into writing, mostly because I've been much more interested of late in making fiction with gifs than with text, but the idea is still there. I hear their recent shows have been great, so that should be fun. I still need to see 'It Follows' and the 'Mad Max'. Nice to see you, and I'm glad to hear your writing is going so well. ** Chris Goode, Hi, maestro. Shoreditch, I've heard of that. The name is very memorable. Wow, how was the weekend? That's intense and humbling and exciting all at the very same time. Yeah, James Tate, so sad. When I was starting, he was, and he still is, so big for me. I miss Goat Island. Oh, ha ha, Coldplay as the worst ... you know, very happily, I haven't even thought about them in ages. Hm. Maybe it stands, but then, say, Muse and Red Hot Chili Peppers immediately spring to my mind as well. Nice that you also like the new Container! Oh, cool about the bringing me over there thing. I'm good with being part of a Q&A with you guys, sure, if you want. October 7th ... I think that's fine. Write to me, and I'll have that sorted out by then. This is so great of you, Chris! I'm really, really blown away! Love, me. ** Sypha, Thanks for your list. I would doubt the Tarantino will be out this year. I think he only just now started or finished shooting it. ** xTx, Yay! My total and major honor, pal, hero! I so wish I cold have been at your LA reading the other night. What an incredible line-up. It much have been really, really something. Love to you! ** Magick mike, Hi, Mike! Man, it's a total mind-boggling, lit-advancing wonderment, your book. Crazy great! I don't know quite a few of your faves, and I just scribbled them down to find asap. And, if SL's system lets me, and I remember there being some issue with international Paypal delivery or something, I'll order those books today or least get them sent to my LA pad. Everyone, Magick mike aka the extraordinary writer M Kitchell, whose book is one of the top faves of mine this year, is also the mastermind behind the extraordinary press Solar Luxuriance, as you may well know. Anyway, he has a recommendation/alert, which I recommend you pay close attention to, and here he is to tell you: 'Oh, also, meant to comment, Solar Luxuriance has released two books that I think would be of interest to both you yourself & the readers of this blog: "THE BOOK IS A GHOST: Thoughts & Paroxysms for Going beyond" by Roger Gilbert-Lecomte and "BATH HOUSE" by Hans Henny Jahnn, both of which are very near and dear to my heart. ** Steevee, Hi, Steve. Oh, nice, the Dr. Yen Lo ended up making your list. Shit, I forgot the Sleater Kinney. Yeah, that's a fantastic record. Gee, I sure hope the two documentaries will be the end of the JT Leroy thing, but, if there is a fictional version, ... playing me ... uh, wow, if he can be aged successfully a little, off the top of my head, I think I would choose Paul Dano. ** Tosh Berman, The honor is most severely and completely mine, sir. Wow, thank you so much for the very generous books list. I haven't read a one of them, and didn't know of their existence in a number of cases. They all intrigue a lot. I'm going to check out Alfred Hayes, for one, right away. ** Mark Gluth, Hi, Mark! I'm working on a bunch of stuff, and I'm good. Yes, Kiddiepunk and I were talking about your and his film lengthily yesterday. It sounds so incredible, and I'm really excited about it and desperate for it to become a real world thing. Next novel thinking sounds great.The thinking part is the most underrated part. '3 Women' is a huge favorite film of mine. Singular and amazing, right? Stay away from those forest fires, and vice versa as well. Lots of love from me! ** Schlix, Hi, Uli. I want to get back into reading Sebald, as I may have already old you. Fantastic books list. Do I know Aleksandar Tisma? Hm, maybe not. I'm going to get all over that and see what's what. I hope you're doing superbly. ** Observations of Deviance, Hi, welcome! Wow, your video place is a total treasure trove. Bookmarked and to-be-scoured straight away. I didn't know about that rare early live Pearls Before Swine stuff. Cool. Etc. Thank you a lot. I don't listen to as much avant/experimental jazz as I want to. I used to a lot some years ago, but I lost track. I'm a devoted addict of The Wire, so I'm constantly reading about it/them and making notes about what to discover and reinvestigate. I'll use exploring your place as an impetus to get off my ass about that. Again, thank you very much for entering. It would be a true pleasure any time you feeling like hanging out. Take care. ** H, Hi. Oh, I'm fine. I just had some lower back shit for a few days. Superb list, of course. I would love to read Niedecker again. It's been too long. I think I'll do that. ** _Black_Acrylic, Hi, Ben. Thank you very much for your 2015 list. I've noted the things I don't know. Six months, wow. Bureaucracy? You're the soul of patience. ** Thomas Moronic, Hi, T. Kiddiepunk was just filling me in re: your guys' visit on the phone yesterday, Sounds fun, and I seriously envy you seeing John's show. God, it sounds so great! Michael has told me teeny-weeny details about your novel, and I'm fascinated. Us at Diggerland, ha ha. That was big fun, and, as I'm sure he told you, big hot. ** James, Hi. Well, thanks. Your input sounds plenty input-y. I'm way, way behind on films, as you could tell by my list. My favorite Paul Metcalfe are the later books. I would recommend either 'Apalache' or, my very favorite, 'Waters of Potowmack.' Or 'Patagoni' if you can't find the others. John Malkovitch?!?! Uh, no, ha ha. ** Bill, Hi, Bill. Your lists are a lesson in excellence. What is 'Turpsy' like? Is that his Bowie covers project? Thank you, thank you! ** Etc etc etc, Howdy, Casey. 'The Infernal' is definitely a massive 2015 book highpoint for me. Abso-fucking-lutely. Lucky you to see Death Grips, and twice! I still haven't had the live experience, but I reckon they'll hit France soon. Something tells me. ** Chip, Hi, Chip. I saw your emails this morning upon awakening, and I'll open them once I get this p.s. finished. Thank you very much! ** Jonathan, Hi, J. Hooray, a list straight from the brain of Mr. Mayhew. Oh, yeah, I spaced on the Mark Fell & Gábor Lázár (really good) and Shamir (ditto). Cool. That Phil Collins record sounds totally wild., Interesting concept, natch, and the contributors to it are quite an array. Thanks for the alert. Cookie: Superficially like a carefully ragged macaron, but not sandwich-like. Chewy in a weird way. Fruity plus chocolate plus something unknown and strange. ** Kier, Hi, Kier! Holy fuck, what happened to your eardrums? It sounds like it wasn't circumstantial like ... an ice pick attack or a very loud concert attack or ... ? What happened? Let them mend, for sure. Do you not get to listen to loud music or loud people or something? Yikes. Oh, my weekend? My old pal and d.l. Bernard Welt is in Paris for a few weeks, and I hung out with him on Saturday. We coffeed, walked, did Shakespeare & Co., coffeed, and wound up seeing 'Jurassic World', which I thought was stupid, lazy, and boring. I was shocked. I thought it would at least be a lot fun, but it was blah. Yesterday, I stayed home and worked, talked to/conferred with Zac, Gisele, etc. Oh, and I was/am very happy because my French publisher texted me to say that, at long, long last, after going through three translators, someone has translated 'The Marbled Swarm' successfully into French, and so my dream from the moment I started the novel of it being published in France is going to come true. Whew. I was scared. That was big. Not much else, though. How was Monday and/or your weekend? Hushed and tiptoeing love, Dennis. ** Misanthrope, Hi, G. I would think. I think so too. I never like the goody two-shoes wrestlers. Has there ever been a more boring pro wrestler than Kurt Angle? I did like Huckster though because even when he was supposed to be a saint, there was always something spooky and melancholy about him. Slacker, eh? You're a '90s boy. ** Postitbreakup, Hi, Josh. Thank you kindly. Well, just 'cos they're not real people to me doesn't mean I don't want people to love and relate to them, you know. The rest is just behind-the-scenes stuff. Thank you so much. I hope you're doing good. Love, me. ** Okay. Wow, I don't know ... the post today just happened to strike me as doable one day almost of its own accord. See you tomorrow.