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The horrific case of a New York City nurse who was murdered after a date arranged through Tinder has gotten more sinister, as prosecutors contend that the culprit allegedly had sex with her corpse before fleeing the scene.
According to reports, these new allegations were levied against Danueal Drayton, 31, as he was arraigned in Queens Supreme Court on Friday (April 1st). Drayton faces an 18-count indictment after being charged with the murder of Samantha Stewart, a 29-year old nurse at her home in Springfield Gardens in July 2018 after connecting on Tinder and going on a date. The prosecution charges that Drayton and Stewart went out on July 16th, with Drayton strangling her before performing intercourse with her lifeless figure. He then left her body wrapped up in a blanket in the bedroom and took her credit cards, buying a plane ticket to California with one of them. Authorities report that Drayton fled the scene in a white van, which was found at John F. Kennedy International Airport the following day. Drayton was apprehended at a hotel room in North Hollywood, California the following week while holding another woman hostage.
“This was a brutal crime that makes every person using a dating app fearful,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said following the court proceeding. “The victim was duped into going out on a date with the defendant, who played a charmer online, but was in fact an alleged sexual predator.” The charges on the indictment against Drayton include murder in the second degree, grand larceny in the fourth degree, petit larceny, sexual misconduct, identity theft in the second and third degree, unlawful possession of personal identification information in the third degree, and the criminal possession of stolen property in the fourth degree. Drayton is scheduled to appear in court on May 25th. If convicted, he is expected to receive a sentence of 25 years to life.
