A notorious "witch cult" leader has been sentenced to death for the 2017 disappearance and gruesome killing of Sydney Loofe, the Saline County Courthouse bared on Wednesday, making the criminal the 12th death row inmate in Nebraska.
Aubrey Trail, 54, and his girlfriend, Bailey Boswell, 26, have been convicted of Loofe's murder in 2017 when Boswell reportedly lured the 24-year-old using the Tinder dating app, The Journal Star reported.
Following a meet-up, the victim had been deemed a threat to expose Trail's "witchcraft cult" lifestyle of group sex and fraud, which led to her murder, according to her killer.
In a lengthy hearing, Trail had maintained that the woman died of erotic asphyxiation during rough sex, admitting to strangling her using an electrical cord at their Wilber apartment on the night of Nov. 15, 2017.
He attempted to justify the killing after Loofe "freaked out" when told about his lifestyle, which included defrauding antique dealers and engaging in group sex with Boswell and other women.
Trail proceeded to hack Loofe's lifeless body and chopped it into 14 pieces before dumping the remains in garbage bags, which were left in ditches along country roads in rural Clay County in Nebraska, according to Yahoo! News.
Trail, who was referred to as the "vampire leader" of a "witch cult" by unidentified witnesses, had admitted that he changed his story and alibis to authorities numerous times. He later confessed that he had intended to kill Loofe.
Hours before the fatal killing, Trail and Boswell were caught on surveillance camera at a Home Depot in Lincoln on Nov. 15, 2017, buying a hacksaw, tools, and bleach, which were later used to dismember Loofe's body. At the time, the unsuspecting victim was working as a cashier at a Menards branch in Lincoln.
The court has heard that the heinous murder met the legal standard of “exceptional depravity” necessary to impose the ultimate punishment of a death sentence.
Evidence showed the man's “cold, calculated” level of planning in the lead-up to Loofe's murder. The victim had been allegedly chosen as prey based on certain characteristics, Saline County District Court Judge Vicky Johnson noted.
The victim had also relished the murder after it gave him intellectual and sexual gratification when he bragged about the murder and even mentioned drinking Loofe’s blood.
“Trail’s words and actions demonstrate he had no regard for the life of Sydney Loofe beyond his pleasures,” Johnson concluded. "There is no reasonable doubt that this aggravating circumstance against Aubrey Trail justifies an imposition of a sentence of death.”
Trail had refused to apologize to Loofe’s grieving family in the courtroom, saying it would be an insult to them. He, however, assured them that the killing was the only thing he regrets doing.
He becomes the 12th man on death row in Nebraska, which rarely carries out executions. Reports suggest that Trail won't face the fatal consequences of his actions anytime soon because the state currently doesn't have the drugs it needs for executions and has no plans to procure them in the near future.
Meanwhile, Trail's girlfriend, Boswell, had maintained she was not aware of the plotted murder despite major evidence showing she had assisted Trail in purchasing the deadly weapons. Trail had slashed his neck in the courtroom in 2019 while arguing his girlfriend was innocent, The U.S. Sun noted.
Prosecutors are now considering the death penalty for Boswell, with a three-judge panel to begin deliberations to determine her fate on June 30.
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