Background: Daniel Stearns in court on Dec. 4 for his sentencing (Law&Crime). Inset: Nancy Howery (Broward County Sheriff”s Office).
A Florida resident has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the brutal murder of a woman he met through a dating app, subsequently burning her dismembered remains.
Daniel Stearns, aged 32, faced conviction on charges of second-degree murder, corpse abuse, and evidence tampering following the conclusion of his trial in October. This verdict was rendered over two years post his indictment for the murder of 44-year-old Nancy Howery, a mother of two. According to earlier reports from Law&Crime, Howery was declared missing on February 18, 2023, by her former husband when she did not arrive to collect their children from school.
Her last confirmed sighting was on February 15, 2023, having mentioned to a friend her intentions to meet Stearns in Palm Bay that day.
The Broward County Sheriff’s Office initiated surveillance on Stearns, leading them to a secluded area known as the Compound. Authorities detailed in a press statement, “During the surveillance, Stearns was caught trying to dispose of evidence. He was subsequently apprehended by the Game Over Task Force.” The remains discovered at the Compound were later confirmed as Howery’s.
Investigations revealed that an intense argument between Stearns and Howery occurred on February 15, 2023. During this confrontation, Stearns fatally shot Howery. Authorities disclosed that Stearns then “dismembered and incinerated the body, scattering the remains across multiple locations.” This gruesome process spanned several days, resulting in five distinct crime scenes at the Compound for law enforcement to examine.
In court on Thursday, prosecutor Samantha Barrett stated, “The defendant harbored anger towards Ms. Howery. He was envious of her interactions with other men, resenting that their relationship wasn’t exclusive. She was not, in his words, ‘adhering to his relationship rules.’”
Todd Howery, the ex-husband of the victim, said, “What he has done to Nancy was demented and defective. … It wasn’t just a murder, okay? It was a savage slaughter.”
Stearns was sentenced to life in prison for the murder charge. Additionally, he was sentenced to more than 22 years in prison for both the abuse of a dead human body and tampering with evidence.
