Inset: Joseph Michael Lynch (Springfield Police Department). Background: The area near where Lynch fatally stabbed Kenny Dale Ashby in Springfield, Fla. (Google Maps).
A Florida man will spend decades behind bars for killing another man during a Facebook Marketplace sale gone horribly awry.
Earlier this week, Joseph Michael Lynch, 47, pleaded no contest to one count each of murder in the second degree and burglary with assault or battery over the death of 33-year-old Kenny Dale Ashby, prosecutors announced in a press release.
In short order, the defendant was sentenced to 40 years for each charge by Circuit Court Judge Brantley Clark. The court assessed the sentences to run concurrently, or at the same time.
"This was a senseless and violent attack, and for the family members of the victim we are glad that justice was quickly served," prosecutor Peter Overstreet said. "The family agreed with the plea and the 40 years in prison which essentially is a life sentence for this defendant."
The incident occurred late at night on July 3. At around 11:30 p.m., Lynch arrived at Ashby's home on Ormond Avenue in Springfield — a small town roughly three miles east of Panama City.
A disagreement came up between the two men after Lynch bought a vehicle from Ashby over Facebook Marketplace without a title.
Ashby promised to find the title, but Lynch grew upset that the search was taking longer than expected. So, Lynch kicked down the victim's door and stabbed him to death in front of his wife and child.
Officers later arrived to find Ashby suffering from multiple stab wounds, and he was rushed to Ascension Sacred Heart Bay. He died from his wounds during the early morning hours on July 4.
Before the plea, prosecutors were prepared for a trial and would have told the jury about the days-old dispute over the vehicle and how Lynch arrived at, and used, two knives on the victim that night.
"The victim's wife, young daughter and three other adults were in the home," a press release issued by the prosecuting attorney's office reads. "The defendant took their cell phones before fleeing."
As he fled, Lynch told bystanders to call 911. Police arrived to find witnesses saying the defendant was in a driveway "a few houses down."
The defendant was arrested near the scene on Ormond Avenue, lying face down on the street and saying "I did it," police said, according to a report by Panama City-based ABC affiliate WMBB.
"This loss has shattered this family completely; we have no sense of safety anymore, not even in our own home," Ashby's widow told the court. "The quiet hours of the night are filled with painful memories and recurring trauma. I relive that night all day every day. Kenny didn't die once, he dies every day 100 times a day for each of us."
The prosecutor also read a statement written by the victim's daughter during the sentencing hearing.
"I want to express what the murder of my dad has done to me and my family," the girl wrote. "The life he lived, the love he gave, and the pain he left behind. Some people say a girl's first love is their brother, but mine was my dad."