WEST PALM BEACH, FL – A couple from Florida, who had just celebrated their wedding last week, has sadly passed away due to a double homicide that took place over the weekend. Authorities have confirmed that the deaths are being treated as a double homicide case. The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office found the man and woman, both tragically deceased from gunshot wounds, at a property in West Palm Beach when they attended to a shooting occurring on Saturday morning. At the time, it was announced that the police were negotiating with a “person of interest.”
By Monday, the Sheriff’s office made public that this person, the 46-year-old Sony Josaphat, who had previously resided at the home where the couple was found, had been detained on two charges of first-degree murder. Facing his first court appearance on Sunday, Josaphat was officially ordered to be held without bail, and a public defender was assigned to his case. Currently, his attorney is yet to comment on the matter.
Due to the invocation of Marsy’s Law by the relatives of the couple, the sheriff’s office will not be publicly revealing the names of the victims. The Sheriff’s Office issued a statement encouraging people to keep the family in their thoughts and prayers during this challenging period. The sister of the female victim revealed that the couple had only just married a week before their shocking deaths.
The shooting is currently being seen as a targeted act of domestic violence, as revealed by a redacted criminal probable cause affidavit. The document indicates that 911 received a call on Saturday morning from Josaphat’s daughter, who alleged that she had witnessed her father shooting the newly married couple. Upon the arrival of deputies, they found both the daughter and her brother present at the home, and the murdered couple lay lifeless on the sidewalk outside the front door.
The affidavit suggests Josaphat was rather sporadic in visiting the property where the incident took place – he had not lived there for over a year but would occasionally drop by. The document also hinted at Josaphat’s history of being “controlling” but did not explicitly explain his relationship to the victims due to redactions.
The day of the killing, Josaphat had been seen on the property prior to the attack, pacing through the yard before approaching the couple and opening fire. He later confessed that seeing a security camera being installed at the front door of the property provoked an “anger” in him, as outlined in the affidavit.
His fury led to the brutal shooting of both victims, and even after the victims had been shot, Josaphat continued to fire his Glock 17, according to the affidavit. After leaving the scene in his car and realizing that his Glock magazine was empty, Josaphat called his pastor and confessed to the act before surrendering himself to the Sheriff’s Office’s main detention center courthouse.
As of now, court documents show no previous allegations of domestic violence or restraining orders against Josaphat in connection to the victims. The presence of drugs or alcohol during the incident has also been ruled out.