The Murder of “Bully” Bobby Kent
I’ve heard of this case many times, especially because there’s a movie called Bully inspired by the case but I’ve actually never seen that movie. I’ve heard mixed reviews about it, and heard that the movie is very exaggerated. I also watched an episode of Murder Among Friends on Investigation Discovery (Season 1, Episode 2). This was a very brutal crime and it’s sad that these people ruined their lives over killing someone, even if they thought that was the only way to stop the killing.
Bobby Kent was described as a handsome and muscular person. He was also described by adults as very charming and polite, his friends described him as mean and as a bully. He went to South Broward High School in Hollywood, Florida.
Bobby
He was best friends with Marty Puccio, and they had been friends since they were little. Marty was one of the people who started to despise him. He said Bobby bullied and pummeled him every chance he got. Apparently Marty would come home with bruises on his face a lot of the time and his parents were concerned. Bobby’s parents didn't like Marty because he felt like he was a slacker and had no future.
Bobby and Marty had a few secrets. They were rumored to use steroids, and they frequently worked out. They also did gay pornography. They didn’t star in the movies, but they hired other men to do it and would profit from it. During the episode of Murder Among Friends, a witness named Harry came forward and said he starred in one of their movies and that he thought Bobby and Marty had sexual relations with each other. Bobby was rumored to be bisexual. The police said they saw these videos and could hear Bobby and Marty directing in the background.
Other Key Characters:
In 1993, Marty started dating an 18 year old named Lisa Connelly. She was constantly made fun of for her weight through the whole episode of Murder Among Friends- which I think is really mean. Bobby also used to call her names too, which is where her hatred started for him. Lisa tried to set Bobby up with her friend Ali Willis so that Bobby would let Marty be with her. Lisa was also pregnant with Marty’s child.
Lisa Connelly and Marty Puccio
Ali was actually interviewed in the show and she said she only dated Bobby for a few weeks because he was abusive, and he made her watch his gay porn videos while they had sex. She immediately started dating another teenager named Donny Semenec. There were a few others involved as well. Donny brought his friend Heather Sellers. Lisa and her cousin Derek Dzvirko, who got mad because Bobby bullied Lisa. There was also a “self proclaimed hit man” involved named Derek Kaufman who never even met Bobby but was recommended by a friend of Ali Willis.
On July 14th, 1993 the group told Bobby to meet them at a construction site near the Everglades. Ali told Bobby she wanted to take a walk with him to “rekindle their relationship.” Unfortunately for Bobby he took the bait.
The night before the murder, the group got together to plan it.
Lisa originally brought her mom’s gun to kill Bobby, but couldn’t go through with it. Donny was the first to stab Bobby, he had a knife and stabbed him in the neck. Marty went next and stabbed him in the stomach. According to the tv show, Bobby had called out for Marty to help him and apologized as he was being beat and stabbed. Bobby was trying to leave and Marty, Donny and Derek Kaufman continued to stab him. Marty was slitting his throat and then Derek (who again, never met this kid) had the final blow with a baseball bat.
They left him to die by putting him near the water in hopes that he would be eaten by alligators. When the police found him, they said his intestines were out. When the autopsy was done, they discovered he had water in his lungs and was still alive when he was placed in the water.
Aftermath and Convictions:
A few days later, Lisa Connelly confessed to her mom who contacted her sister who was Derek Dzvirko’s mom. Derek told the police everything and told them where Bobby’s body was.
Marty Puccio- Charged with first degree murder. He was originally sentenced to death but they overturned it and changed it to life in prison. He is in jail in Annex, Florida.
Donny Semenec- Sentenced to life in prison, plus 15 years for conspiracy. He is in jail in Clermont, Florida.
Derek Kaufman- Sentenced to life in prison, plus 30 years for conspiracy. He is in jail in Daytona, Florida. (AGAIN DIDN’T KNOW THE VICTIM).
Lisa Connelly- Was initially sentenced to life in prison. It was overturned and reduced to 22 years. She was released in February 2004.
Ali Willis- Charged with second degree murder and sentenced to 40 years in prison, with 40 years of probation. The sentence was reduced to 17 years. She was released in September 2001, but is still on probation.
Derek Dzvirko- Pleaded guilty to second degree murder. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison and was released in October 1999.
Heather Swallers- Pleaded guilty to second degree murder and sentenced to 7 years in prison. She was released in February 1998.
Marty Puccio, Ali Willis, Donny Semenec, Heather Swallers, Derek Dzvirko, Derek Kaufman and Lisa Connelly.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
This case was so brutal and yes, sad. Even though it seems that Bobby was a bully/rapist (if that’s true) and overall terrible person he didn’t deserve to be murdered and thrown away to be eaten by alligators. If anyone has a different opinion that’s cool. I also might have to watch the movie and see if I like it or not.
Also I thought this video was interesting because Ali Willis seems like a liar to me. She downplays her role in Bobby’s murder every chance she gets and did this on the tv show I watched, too. I don’t think she lied about his abuse, but I do think she was just as guilty as the rest of them.
