AT A GLANCE
Victim: Christian Tobechukwu “Toby” Ubumseli, 27
Date: Sunday, April 3, 2022
Location: Miami, Florida
Perpetrator: Courtney Taylor Clenney, aka Courtney Tailor, 26
Crimes in sum: Courtney Clenney, 26, was arrested on August 10, 2022 on second-degree murder charges, but some still believe she’s innocent. Do you agree?
Courtney Clenney, a 26-year-old social media influencer and OnlyFans model from Midland, Texas, was a guest on the comedy podcast, We In Miami, in March of 2022. In the episode, she joked about being the “crazy, toxic girlfriend.”
A month later, that remark became an ominous warning when she fatally stabbed her on-again, off-again boyfriend of two years, 27-year-old Christian Tobechukwu “Toby” Obumseli.
Unfortunately, hindsight is always 20/20.
What Happened?
The homicide occurred in the early evening on Sunday, April 3, 2022. Courtney and Christian, who went by “Toby,” lived in Apartment 2201 at the One Paraiso Residences, a 53-floor luxury high-rise in the Edgewater community of Miami, Florida. The apartment, located on the 22nd floor, has three bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms, waterfront views and a private elevator. All those amenities and more cost a modest $10,000 per month.
However, within their luxury lifestyle, the couple lived in their own personal hell. Police visited their apartment at least seven times since they moved there in January 2022. This call would be the last.
Toby suffered a stab wound to the chest that penetrated three inches into his skin. The six-inch kitchen knife punctured an artery and the wound was fatal. Toby was eight shy of his 28th birthday.
An Unlikely Story
When police questioned Courtney, she denied stabbing Toby. She said Toby charged at her and she threw the knife at him from across the room, or from about 10 feet away. Courtney said she didn’t intend to hurt Toby, but to scare him away.
However, the model, actress and personal trainer, who earned more than $3 million on OnlyFans from 2020 to 2022, didn’t think her statement through. In court, the medical examiner said that unless Courtney was a professional knife-thrower, it was impossible for the knife to have penetrated Toby’s skin in such a powerful downward motion. Rather, Toby received the fatal wound at close range.
On Wednesday, August 10, 2022, Hawaii police arrested Courtney on a second-degree murder charge. Courtney’s defense team asked for bail and pre-trial release.
The judge denied both requests. Expectedly, the blonde-haired, blue-eyed beauty is preparing to play the self-defense card. She will face trial this year (2023).
Here’s the full story.
Who’s Courtney Clenney?
Courtney Taylor Clenney, known on social media as Courtney Tailor, was born on April 21, 1996 to Deborah Bond and Kim Clenney in rural Midland, Texas. Courtney’s parents are entrepreneurs and have owned at least three small businesses, which include a professional organizing company, a roofing contractor and an energy services company. She has one younger sister, Morgan.
At age 7, Courtney and her family moved to Austin. Growing up, Courtney was competitive and actively participated in sports. Her competitiveness followed her into adulthood and drove her short-lived success.
Young Courtney participated in many sports, including soccer, basketball, swimming, gymnastics and horseback riding. As a child, she was a high-diver and considered competing in the olympics. As a teen and young adult, she transitioned into physical fitness. Courtney became a certified personal trainer and competed in a number of athletic bikini competitions, including the NPC West Coast Classic in 2016.
Entering the limelight.
Courtney finished about two years of college before dropping out. School wasn’t for her. She dreamt of becoming an entertainer and certainly had the looks, physique and drive to make it happen.
Courtney began to see an acting coach and appeared as an extra in TV commercials for Pepsi, Cirrus Logic, Celebration Church and Discount Dollars. She also fulfilled small roles in American Psycho, The Lying Game, Unstalkable, Boyhood and Everybody Wants Some!!! and in the music video for G-Eazy and Bebe Rexha’s 2015 song, “Me, Myself & I.” Later that year, she posed for Playboy magazine.
In 2017, Courtney moved to Los Angeles, California, for more opportunities. Her social media presence also started to grow. She currently has more than two million followers on her Instagram page: view it here. Courtney also became a brand ambassador for BANG energy drinks, Manscaped razors and The Chive, and advertised clothing from brands including Missguided.
An OnlyFans superstar.
OnlyFans, an internet content subscription service with a reputation for adult content, launched in 2016. The following year, Courtney began selling explicit photos, videos and other content, including subscriptions, on the site. Her father, Kim Clenney, wasn’t aware of his daughter’s online presence until her arrest in 2022.
Courtney meets Toby.
Courtney and Toby met in Austin. The couple began dating sometime in 2020.
Toby was also from Texas, but he grew up in Plano, about 215 miles north of Austin, where Courtney spent her childhood.
Toby was born on April 12, 1994 to his parents, Christopher Obumseli and Chio Ndiwe. His parents are from Nigeria, but Toby was born in Dallas, Texas. Toby was the youngest of three children, which includes his sister Jen Adaeze and Jeffrey Obumseli.
Growing up, Toby was an athlete; something he and Courtney shared in common. In high school, he played basketball and football, and was captain of the football team. He went on to attend Texas Tech University and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in communications studies and business management. In his adult life, Toby held various sales positions, and eventually became a cryptocurrency investor and trader. He also opened his own business, Wiseman & Peachtree LLC.
Friends and family described Toby as loving, carefree, compassionate and gentle-spirited, with a big, beautiful smile.
A tumultuous union.
After the murder, Toby’s family appeared on the Dr. Phil talk show to discuss their terrible experience. A friend, who wished to remain anonymous, described the couple as very much “in love” in the beginning of their relationship. But within a few months, the union became combative, unstable, hostile and tempestuous.
Courtney and Toby argued a lot. They also broke up a lot, but they always got back together. Their relationship worsened because of Courtney’s drinking. When Courtney drank alcohol, she was violent and impulsive. It was often during her drunken stupors that fights started between her and Toby.
Minor occurrences usually triggered their fights, such as Toby looking at or talking to another woman. Meanwhile, Courtney was the one with a history of infidelity toward Toby.
Form bad to worse.
The constant arguing affected Toby. Many of his friends noticed. Once upbeat, positive and full of energy, he became stressed, quiet and withdrawn. Courtney started to pull Toby away from his friends, which was accompanied by her intensifying jealousy.
Eventually, the arguments became physical, with Courtney as both the aggressor and the abuser. Courtney started to hit Toby on the arms and chest, slap him across the face and pull his hair, all while verbally berating him. The behavior escalated to Courtney stabbing Toby in the leg on one occasion and cutting his cheek on another.
The couple first moved into a penthouse apartment together iin South Austin, Texas. Neighbors there complained about their fighting. One neighbor on the 10th floor found a tiger painting on the balcony that Courtney threw from their apartment.
After the couple moved to another penthouse in Miami, Florida, neighbors there complained about yelling, slamming of doors and breaking objects, including neighbors who lived two floors above them. The police visited the apartment often. Courtney often trashed the apartment during their fights and left shambles in her wake.
During a trip to Las Vegas in July 2021, police arrested Courtney for domestic battery against Toby. While staying at The Cosmopolitan hotel, Courtney threw a glass at Toby, barely missing his head. Toby chose not to press charges and police released Courtney the following day.
A female abuser with no accountability.
Toby made excuses for Courtney. He was quick to blame her hostile behavior on her drinking and claimed their relationship was good when Courtney was sober. Unfortunately, with her growing fame and cash flow, Courtney was sober less and less often. People in the Austin and Miami night life scenes knew about Courtney and not for good reasons.
Friends said Toby never retaliated. Rather, he stood there “like a stick figure” and took Courtney’s abuse. He’d try to block her swings or hold her arms so she’d stop swinging, but never fought back. Instead, Toby always tried to appease Courtney and calm her down.
Friends who partied and traveled with Toby and Courtney recall Courtney often pulling Toby to the side, and starting fights with him that involved slapping, pushing, shoving and spitting on him. On at least one occasion, she yelled at him for looking at other women. On another, Courtney pushed Toby down the stairs at a house party.
Escalating violence and abuse.
There is telling video footage captured from the elevator of their Miami penthouse, that shows an altercation between Toby and Courtney. In the video, Courtney hits Toby, pulls his hair and yells at him. Toby, on the other hand, tries to calm Courtney down and shield himself from her blows. View it here.
In February 2022, two months before Toby died, Courtney cheated on him, tried stabbing him (but the knife missed and sliced his beard and cheek), called him the n***** word (which she did repeatedly) and kicked him out of the apartment several times. Toby had to get stitches in his face, which reopened several times due to Courtney slapping him.
Toby wrote text messages to Courtney, pleading for change and trying to reason with her. He never stopped trying to be on her side.
Stuck under Courtney’s grasp.
Because of Courtney’s growing success and opportunities, the couple decided Toby would work as her personal assistant. Now, Toby waited on hand and foot for Courtney, managing photo shoots and her schedule. In return, Courtney promised him a percentage of the revenue from her OnlyFans account. It’s unknown as to whether Courtney paid Toby, but it seems unlikely.
Sometimes, Courtney felt bad for treating Toby so poorly. Because she had the money, Courtney tried to compensate for her foul behavior with expensive gifts. On at least one occasion, Courtney threw Toby’s luggage and all his belongings off the balcony of their Miami penthouse. To make up for what she did, she bought him new belongings, along with a brand new luggage set from Louie Vuitton worth about $10,000.
Final days.
Courtney’s behavior became more unstable, aggressive and unhinged by the day.
On Friday, April 1, 2022, three days before Toby died, police visited the apartment on a domestic dispute. Courtney had bruises all over her arms and legs.
Apartment management received many complaints about the couple. The couple was also months behind on their rent. Consequently, Aleros Capital Investments, which represented their apartment building, filed a case against Courtney in Miami Court on March 21, 2022 for eviction.
A Pattern of Behavior
Courtney’s behavior towards Toby escalated over their relationship, but the young woman displayed signs of problematic behavior leading up to this point, including a history of domestic violence. Her violent past includes allegedly stabbing her previous boyfriend before Toby. And then, there’s Shawn Rhoden.
Courtney’s relationship with Shawn Rhoden.
In 2022, bodybuilder Nick Trigili shared a video to his YouTube channel BodyBuilding & BS (which has over 106,000 subscribers) about Courtney physically assaulting bodybuilder Shawn Rhoden and shattering his jaw in 2017.
In 2017, Shawn, known in the bodybuilding community as Mr. Olympia, was married to his then-wife Michelle Sugar, who he also shared a child with. That same year, he started an affair with Courtney. Sadly, Shawn passed away from a heart attack in November 2021.
Courtney and Shawn trained at Gold’s Gym in Venice Beach, California, where they met. Shawn provided Courtney with nutritional information and helped her prepare for upcoming competitions. Over time, it evolved into a sexual relationship. Courtney didn’t know about Shawn being married, but she allegedly shattered his jaw when she found out.
Shawn never pressed charges against Courtney due to it being an affair. He also never publicly discussed his broken jaw, but people presumed it was from a car accident. While recovering, Shawn had to blend his food and eat through a straw. Nick and two of Shawn’s ex-wives corroborated the story.
2018.
A woman in Austin, Texas, sued Courtney on August 30, 2018 for an incident involving a car crash. The woman accused Courtney of personal injuries, property damage and loss of use of a vehicle. The case was settled out of court and ultimately dismissed.
2020.
On September 16, 2020, police arrested Courtney, also in Texas, for driving while intoxicated. Her first DUI charge came at age 18, so this was her second. Courtney’s blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was 0.30, more than times the legal limit. Police released Courtney on a $8,000 bond. As a condition of her release, Courtney had an ignition interlock device installed in her car to measure her alcohol level.
The Night of the Murder
On Sunday, April 3, 2022, Toby left their Miami apartment around 1:15 pm and returned at 4:33 pm with sandwiches from Subway for him and Courtney. At 4:01 pm, Courtney live-streamed herself on Instagram, in what seemed to be a Q&A session with fans. She wore the same outfit that police photographed her in later that day. Her behavior on that live was suggestive of her being on substances.
Courtney called Christian right before the live at 4:01 pm and again at 4:33 pm.
When he left, Courtney realized that Toby stopped sharing his location with her. Because Courtney didn’t trust Toby and was exceptionally jealous, this was a major source of contention. When Toby returned, he shared his location again with Courtney, but she didn’t do the same.
Fast-escalating and deadly.
Within the next half hour, Courtney called her mother at 4:43 pm and chatted for six minutes. Then, she called her mom again at 4:49 pm and spoke for seven minutes. At some point between 4:43 pm and 4:57 pm, Courtney stabbed Toby in the chest with a six-inch serrated kitchen knife. The knife pierced three inches into his skin, just below a tattoo of Courtney’s name, and hit an artery. Courtney’s mother, Deborah Bond, later said she heard Courtney say that Toby was “lying.”
At 4:57 pm, Courtney called 9-1-1 to ask for paramedics. At the same time, neighbors reported a disturbance to building management, who then phoned security and also called police.
To police, Courtney claimed that Toby charged at her, pushed her and attacked her in retaliation. After the stabbing, Courtney called her mother for support, while Toby bled out in the background. Thirteen minutes later, she called 9-1-1. By the time the paramedics arrived, Toby suffered excessive blood loss.
When authorities came to the apartment, Courtney was covered in blood and curiously kissing her dogs in the hallway.
Courtney is hospitalized.
During the 3.5-hour police interrogation, Courtney threatened to kill herself. As a result, police followed the Florida Mental Health Act of 1971. Also known as the Baker Act, this law empowers law enforcement, health care professionals, judges and/or family members to have an individual or loved one involuntarily committed to a mental health facility for up to 72 hours to receive emergency treatment for a suspected mental health issue. Immediate crisis prevention is the main goal.
Officials held Courtney at a mental hospital for less than 48 hours. She walked free under the guise of innocence and with minimal investigation outright.
Five days after the stabbing, a member of the public spotted Courtney at a hotel bar in Miami. Courtney was with her father, ordering alcohol beverages at the bar. The member of the public told Courtney to leave because she just killed her boyfriend. Courtney turned to this individual and said, “He lied to me,” referring to Toby.
Courtney remains free, for now.
Because of Courtney’s wealth, she got ahold of an elite lawyer who painted a picture of domestic violence, with Courtney on the receiving end of that violence. So, she was free to go. She didn’t spend time in jail and she continued to drink excessively, which worsened after the murder.
In June 2022, three months after killing Toby, Courtney moved back to Austin, Texas, to be closer to her parents. She purchased a lavish, 3080-foot, $1.35 million-dollar home in Lake Pointe, Texas, located in the Bee Cave community of Austin. The home had four bedrooms, four bathrooms, a media room, a game room, a hot tub and three large deck areas. She also transferred $1.5 million into her father’s bank account for him to oversee as her mental health continued to decline.
Toby’s family fights for justice.
Toby’s mother, Chio Ndiwe, learned about her youngest son’s death the following day, Monday, April 4, 2022. While she was at work, Chio received a call asking about Toby’s status as an organ donor. She hadn’t heard anything about his murder the day before.
His family went onto the Dr Phil talk show to share their side of the story. They also created a GoFundMe page to help pay for Toby’s funeral expenses, and hired a lawyer to fight against the case. The amount of evidence against Courtney is insurmountable, and with the help of eye-witness accounts, 12,000 text messages, the footage from the elevator of Courtney attacking Christian, and letters, audio recordings and photos, Toby’s team put together an unshakeable case.
Five months later, police detained Courtney on August 10, 2022, in Laupahoehoe, Hawaii. She flew to Laupahoehoe to attend rehabilitation for substance abuse and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). She returned to Florida on August 11 and was arrested on second-degree murder charges.
Courtney entered a plea of not guilty and will remain incarcerated until her trial and subsequent sentencing date this year.
My Two Cents Corner
I’ve done a lot of research into this case and listened to quite a few audio recordings that Toby Obumseli took of him and Courtney’s arguments. In one of these arguments, Courtney calls him the n***** word, while screaming at the top of her lungs and threatening to slap Toby. The reason for this behavior was because Toby said “hello” to another woman that passed him while he was riding a bike, and that he heard her and Courtney were doing a “live” (meaning if they were going to be live-streaming content on social media together.)
If this isn’t the most insecure-sounding woman out there, than I don’t know who is. It’s both ironic and sad that someone who put so much effort into her looks and also made so much money off of them, had so little self-esteem that it turned her into a monster. In my opinion, it sounded like Courtney used her looks as leverage and her high-paying and recent fame to imagine herself superior to Toby, and also to others. Her “success” gave her permission to behave ever-more inexcusably and do so without accountability. Courtney used her wealth to physically and mentally abuse Christian, and as a way to control him during her arguments.
Inside, it sounds like Courtney was an empty shell looking for some sort of constant gratification or escape. She never held herself accountable and neither did many people in her life (or so it seems). She truly believed that she would be able to use her looks, wealth and status as a young and beautiful white woman, to escape the consequences of her actions, which robbed family and friends of their beloved Toby. Considering the pattern of her behaviors, I believe it was only a matter of time until Courtney committed some sort of tragic offense if she continued on this path without changing her behaviors.
Allegedly and in my own opinion!
Thank you for reading.
Resources
- Instagram personality charged with murder months after allegedly fatally stabbing boyfriend – ABC News
- Courtney Tailor, OnlyFans model, arrested in death of boyfriend, Christian Obumseli – FanFest
- Friends say IG model who fatally stabbed her boyfriend was violent toward him, abused alcohol – BET
- An OnlyFans model says she stabbed her boyfriend in self-defense. Friends claim she was the abuser – Rolling Stone
- The OnlyFans model who became a killer: The case of Courtney Clenney – Coffeehouse Crime
- OnlyFans Star Courtney Clenney charged with boyfriend’s murder + disturbing details in warrant – Annie Elise x 10 to Life
- OnlyFans and Instagram model killed her boyfriend with ‘forceful downward thrust’ that sliced artery near heart: Prosecutor – Law & Crime
- Police interrogate OnlyFans model Courtney Clenney after boyfriend’s death (FULL VIDEO) – Law & Crime
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