Online Gamer Posed As Delivery Driver In Plot To Murder California Woman He Met On Platform After 'Year's Long Obsession', Cops Say

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Devin Wolfgang Vandorhoef and Darius Avery Whyte
Devin Wolfgang Vandorhoef and Darius Avery Whyte, both 25, have been accused of attempted murder and conspiracy to commit attempted murder, among several other charges, according to the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office. KSBW-TV

An online gamer accused of posing as a delivery driver in an alleged attempt to kill a California woman he met on a gaming platform traveled from Canada to carry out the purported murder plot, said authorities.

Devin Wolfgang Vandorhoef and Darius Avery Whyte, both 25, have been accused of attempted murder and conspiracy to commit attempted murder, among several other charges, according to the Monterey County Sheriff's Office.

They pleaded not guilty to the charges. Vandorhoef is being held on $4.2 million bail, while Whyte's bail was set at $1 million.

Vandorhoef and the victim allegedly met through an online gaming platform last year, which led him to develop "a yearslong obsession" with the woman and prompted the unexpected visit to her home in Salinas, California Nov. 24, said authorities.

Whyte traveled with Vandorhoef, however Vandorhoef was alone when – posing as a delivery driver – he knocked on the victim's front door, with a package in hand. The woman's boyfriend answered and Vandorhoef allegedly forced his way into the home, lunging at him with a knife and stabbing him several times, the sheriff's office said.

The woman grabbed a sharp metal object and stabbed her boyfriend's alleged attacker. During the tussle, Vandorhoef allegedly strangled and inflicted multiple knife wounds against the female victim.

Deputies responded to several 911 calls reporting a stabbing. The victims and suspect were transported to a local hospital and are expected to survive.

During the investigation, detectives discovered the package Vandorhoef brought with him contained duct tape, handcuffs and knives. It's unclear what his intentions with the objects were, said authorities.

Deputies made contact with Whyte at the scene, but he denied having knowledge of the incident. He was arrested Nov. 26 on a flight preparing to depart San Jose Mineta International Airport for Canada.

"It's really one of the strangest cases I've ever seen," Chief Assistant District Attorney Berkley Brannon said, according to KSBW-TV. "Guys coming from Vancouver to Salinas to pose as an Amazon delivery person and stab somebody. I mean, it's extraordinary."

The suspects are due back in court Dec. 10.

If convicted, they face up to 25 years in prison.

Tags
Canada, California, U.S. Crime, Pc gaming
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