17 August 2020

Man charged with attempted armed kidnapping of WWE star Sonya Deville after ‘stalking her for years’

WWE star Sonya Deville has confirmed she is ‘safe’ after a South Carolina man broke into her home in Lutz, Florida on Sunday.

Phillip Thomas II, 24, who works at an Applebee's restaurant, was arrested and charged with aggravated stalking, armed burglary of a dwelling, attempted armed kidnapping and criminal mischief.

He had been planning to abduct her for eight months, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.

Although police did not identify the victim, the home where Thomas was arrested is owned by Deville, whose real name is 26-year-old Daria Berenato. Deville currently stars in the E! cable channel reality TV series Total Divas.  

Deville later tweeted a thank you message to the sheriff's office, writing: 'Thank you everyone for your love and concern. A very frightening experience but thankfully everyone is safe. A special thank you to Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office for their response and assistance.' 

Thomas ‘cut a hole in the patio screen’ and waited for three to four hours until Deville went to bed, The Tampa Bay Times reported.

He entered the home through a sliding glass door and activated the alarm around 2.45am.

Deville saw Thomas on the property and reportedly fled the home with a guest in a car and called emergency services. 

When the deputies arrived, Thomas was still in the house and was carrying a knife, plastic zip ties and duct tape, and told deputies he was planning to take Deville hostage.

Deville, whose real name is Daria Berenato, said on Twitter: “Thank you everyone for your love and concern. A very frightening experience but thankfully everyone is safe. A special thank you to Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office for their response and assistance.”

Sheriff Chad Chronister said: "Our deputies are unveiling the suspect’s disturbing obsession with this homeowner who he had never met, but stalked on social media for years.

“It’s frightening to think of all the ways this incident could have played out had the home alarm not gone off and alerted the homeowner of an intruder.”

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