Daria Rae Berenato, mostly known by the alias Sonya Deville, is the proof that real-life can have an impact on plans that the WWE had set in motion for its wrestling superstars.
Deville was set to take on Mandy Rose in an epic match at SummerSlam last week, where her opponent was supposed to shave her head. Things could not proceed as planned after Deville had to deal with a serious incident in her personal life.
The WWE professional wrestler went through a “very frightening experience” when an obsessive fan forced his way into her home on Sunday morning.
Phillip Thomas, a 24-year-old South Carolina native, started sending increasingly aggressive messages to Deville on social media in March 2019, but in time his obsession with the entertainer escalated so much that he decided to kidnap her.
As a result, the stalker reached Deville’s home in Lutz, Florida, equipped with a knife and duct tape, and broke into the place by carving the patio screen of the house.
Once inside, Thomas waited patiently for a couple of hours for the WWE star and the friend she had staying over to go to sleep.
However, the criminal’s intentions of quietly reaching his idol were ruined, as he activated the security alarm upon entering the house.
According to Deville, upon hearing the alarm, she and her friend quickly left the property and contacted the police.
Since the offender lingered in the house by the time authorities arrived, he was quickly arrested for aggravated stalking, attempted kidnapping, and armed burglary.
According to the Hillsborough County Sheriff, Chad Chronister, the police officers working on the case were “unveiling the suspect’s disturbing obsession with this homeowner who he had never met, but stalked on social media for years.”
Chronister also stated it was very fortunate that the security alarm was activated just in time since the incident could have had a much more frightening outcome.
With the case headed to trial, Deville’s attorney did not think it was a good idea for her to shave her head in the wrestling match. Moreover, the incident was traumatizing, and Deville will probably need time to recover fully.
So, Rose ended winning the confrontation, forcing Deville’s character to leave the WWE for now. It is said that she will be returning in the near future, but it is unclear when that will happen.
For the time being, Deville will focus all of her energy on getting justice. A judge has denied bond for the alleged stalker.
Some fans are really sad about this outcome because it looked like Deville was meant to be a champion and a dominating force in the industry.
