Crime

Trial of OnlyFans model charged with stabbing boyfriend to death pushed back

OnlyFans model and murder defendant, Courtney Clenney, right, appears in court as her defense lawyer argued that the Miami-Dade States Attorney’s Office should be disqualified following the exit of the lead prosecutor inside Courtroom 2-5 at the Richard E. Gerstein Justice Building on Thursday, May 22, 2025 in Miami, Florida.
OnlyFans model and murder defendant, Courtney Clenney, right, appears in court as her defense lawyer argued that the Miami-Dade States Attorney’s Office should be disqualified following the exit of the lead prosecutor inside Courtroom 2-5 at the Richard E. Gerstein Justice Building on Thursday, May 22, 2025 in Miami, Florida. cjuste@miamiherald.com

The trial of the OnlyFans model charged with stabbing her boyfriend to death in a luxury Miami high-rise will no longer begin in December, a judge said Wednesday.

At a hearing Wednesday morning, prosecutors and defense attorneys for Courtney Clenney, 29, indicated that they were not ready for the Dec. 1 trial date due to several pending motions. Instead, Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Andrea Ricker Wolfson set a Dec. 5 deadline to respond to the filings.

A new trial date has not been scheduled.

Clenney — an OnlyFans model who at one point boasted more than 2 million followers — has been jailed since August 2022. She was arrested in Hawaii four months after, police say, she stabbed her boyfriend Christian Obumseli, 27, to death inside their bayfront Miami condo.

Police say Instagram model Courtney Clenney fatally stabbed Christian “Toby” Obumseli on April 3, 2022 in Miami. Defense attorneys are arguing that she acted in self-defense.
Police say Instagram model Courtney Clenney fatally stabbed Christian “Toby” Obumseli on April 3, 2022 in Miami. Defense attorneys are arguing that she acted in self-defense. Instagram and Facebook

Evidence from the case detailed a tumultuous relationship between the jet-setting couple.

Among the pending legal filings is the defense’s request to throw out the case, citing alleged misconduct by prosecutors. Clenney’s attorneys have attempted to disqualify the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office from the case after turmoil over a seized laptop led to the former lead prosecutor stepping down.

“There is no guarantee as afforded by both the State of Florida and United States Constitution that Ms. Clenney can and will receive a fair trial in this matter based on all the violations committed by the State of Florida,” attorneys Sabrina Puglisi, Dianne Carames and Frank Prieto said in the 37-page document.

OnlyFans model Courtney Clenney, charged in the stabbing death of her boyfriend Christian Obumsel in 2022, seen here speaking with attorney Sabrina Vora-Puglisi in December.
OnlyFans model Courtney Clenney, charged in the stabbing death of her boyfriend Christian Obumsel in 2022, seen here speaking with attorney Sabrina Vora-Puglisi in December. PHOTO BY AL DIAZ adiaz@miamiherald.com

In March, Assistant State Attorney Khalil Quinan stepped down after a judge ruled that prosecutors violated attorney-client privilege when they collected texts and emails between Clenney’s parents, Deborah Lyn Clenney and Kim DeWayne Clenney, and their attorneys — even if prosecutors weren’t aware at the time that the model’s parents had hired legal representation.

READ MORE: Lead prosecutor in OnlyFans murder case steps down after judge rules he can be deposed

Clenney and her parents had been charged in a computer hacking scheme that prosecutors said they uncovered through communications obtained with a warrant. Those charges were dropped. Among the evidence gathered by prosecutors was an outline of how Clenney’s legal team planned to defend the murder case.

“It is my hope that my withdrawal will facilitate the resolution of the Defendant’s meritless motions, correct the record, and allow these proceedings to refocus on what truly matters: justice for Christian Obumseli,” Quinan wrote in a document when he stepped down.

In the filing, attorneys also mentioned how a civilian witness — the first person to respond to the apartment after the stabbing — was ordered by police to delete all of his recordings. The witness, according to transcripts referenced in the document, testified that he was ordered to delete videos and photos that he took of the scene.

Accused murderer and OnlyFans model Courtney Clenney in court Wednesday with attorney Jude M. Faccidomo, before a judge ruled evidence in a computer hacking case against her and her parents, would be tossed.
Accused murderer and OnlyFans model Courtney Clenney in court Wednesday with attorney Jude M. Faccidomo, before a judge ruled evidence in a computer hacking case against her and her parents, would be tossed. Pedro Portal pportal@miamiherald.com

Clenney’s attorneys accused investigators of destroying blood evidence that “would have been helpful to the defense.”

Victim recorded Clenny’s outbursts

In another filing, the defense asked the judge to bar more than 15 of Obumseli’s phone recordings from being played in the trial. The attorneys argued the videos and audio files were inadmissible evidence because they were taken while Clenney was in private, in her home, and have no relevance to the crime.

Obumseli chronicled their arguments in the recordings, which captured Clenney angrily screaming, berating and cursing him out using racist slurs. In one of the audio files, Clenney appears to be enraged because he didn’t tell her that he said hello to a female acquaintance while on a bicycle ride. Clenney calls Obumseli the n-word multiple times, and tells him to “man up b----” and to “shut up and let me slap you, dumb a--!”

READ MORE: Slain boyfriend of OnlyFans model secretly recorded her raging outbursts, racial slurs

Obumseli, Clenney’s attorneys allege, would “mentally manipulate” Clenney and “provoke her until he achieved the desired result... a heated argument.” He would then threaten to play the recordings in front of friends and family, the attorneys say.

“This manipulative gaslighting behavior... was just one example of the mental abuse she endured in addition to the physical abuse...” the document states.

OnlyFans model and accused murderer Courtney Clenney in court.
OnlyFans model and accused murderer Courtney Clenney in court. Pedro Portal pportal@miamiherald.com

This story was originally published October 15, 2025 at 3:55 PM.

Grethel Aguila
Miami Herald
Grethel covers courts and the criminal justice system for the Miami Herald. She graduated from the University of Florida (Go Gators!), speaks Spanish and Arabic and loves animals, traveling, basketball and good storytelling. Grethel also attends law school part time.
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