FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Case # 12CF3397
Date: November 8, 2018
FIANCÉE OF DEATH ROW INMATE SENTENCED TO TWO YEARS AND EIGHT MONTHS IN JAIL AS ACCESSORY IN 2010 DOUBLE MURDER
SANTA ANA, Calif. – The fiancée of a death row inmate was sentenced to two years and eight months in jail today for her role as an accessory after the fact in a 2010 double murder.
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Defendant |
Charges |
Sentence |
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Rachel Mae Buffett, 31, Costa Mesa |
Found guilty by a jury on Sept. 12, 2018, of the following felony counts:
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Two years and eight months in county jail |
Circumstances of the Case
- In 2010, Buffett was engaged to 28-year-old Daniel Patrick Wozniak. The two were planning to marry on May 28, 2010, in Long Beach.
- A week before the wedding, Wozniak brutally murdered 26-year-old Samuel Herr and Herr’s friend, 23-year-old Juri “Julie” Kibuishi. (Daniel Wozniak news release)
- Several times in May 2010, Buffett lied to Costa Mesa Police Department (CMPD) detectives as they investigated the murder of Kibuishi and disappearance of Herr.
- On May 3, 2012, Wozniak was indicted by the Orange County Grand Jury and charged with two felony counts of murder with special circumstance sentencing enhancements including multiple murders, murder for financial gain, and the personal discharge of a firearm causing death. On Dec. 16, 2015, he was convicted by a jury, who recommended death, in under two hours. On Sept. 23, 2016, Wozniak was sentenced to death.
- Buffet was charged on Dec. 20, 2012, with being an accessory after the fact by lying to CMPD detectives throughout the investigation in an attempt to protect Wozniak.
Victim impact statements were read today at the sentencing. Julie Kibuishi’s mother, June Kibuishi, stated, in part, “I will never get to see her fulfill her dreams in fashion, be a bride or a mom… All of these dreams for a mom having a daughter were taken away not just from me but from our family and all of her friends.” Samuel Herr’s father, Steve Herr, stated, “To know we will never see Sam again, never hear his voice again, and never tough and give him hugs again is a feeling no parent should ever know.”
Prosecutor: Senior Deputy District Attorney Matt Murphy, Homicide Unit