Convicted Killer Starred In NINE Hours After Committing Double Murder

Those sitting in the audience at Hunger Artists Theatre in Fullerton, California on the evening of May 21st, 2010, watching a community theatre production of Arthur Kopit and Maury Yeston's Tony-winning musical, NINE, had no way of knowing the show's leading man, Dan Wozniak, had committed two brutal murders earlier that day, one of them in the very theatre where they were sitting.

At age 31, Wozniak had some nice starring roles under his belt in local productions, such as Captain von Trapp in THE SOUND OF MUSIC and Harold Hill in THE MUSIC MAN. His performance as self-absorbed film director Guido in NINE was reviewed as "superb" by the OC Weekly. (see image)

But there was a darker side to the actor. As reported in today's New York Post, Wozniak was convicted Wednesday of first degree murder for killing two Orange Coast college students in a scheme to steal money and dismembering one in an attempt to cover his tracks.

About to be married, Wozniak was deep in debt facing eviction when he devised a plan to kill a neighbor, Samuel Herr, and steal $50,000 that the Army veteran had saved from his service in Afghanistan.

According to prosecutors, Wozniak shot the 26-year-old Costa Mesa man in the attic of the theatre, dismembered him, and dumped the remains in a park.

He then used Herr's phone to text the victim's friend, Julie Kibuishi. He pretended to be Herr and got the 23-year-old to come to Herr's apartment to talk so he could shoot her and make it appear that Herr had raped and killed her before fleeing.

A 16-year-old boy testified that Wozniak hired him to use Herr's ATM card to withdraw money from the victim's bank account.

Wozniak was arrested days later at his bachelor party.

Wozniak said "money and insanity' were his motives.

"I don't know why I did it, he added. Mainly it was the money, and it seemed so easy."

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