SANFORD, FL — A 25-year-old Casselberry man who filmed himself sexually assaulting an 11-year-old girl and later attempted to hire a hitman from inside jail to murder the victim, prosecutor, and lead detective has been sentenced to life in prison, authorities announced.
Talil M. Vann was sentenced on Monday, July 27, 2026, by Seminole County Circuit Judge David Dugan. Vann received two consecutive life prison terms for Capital Sexual Battery on a Child Under 12, along with a consecutive 15-year sentence for Using a Child in a Sexual Performance, following his conviction at trial in June.
Snapchat Scheme and Digital Evidence
According to court records, the initial investigation began in May 2024 after the victim reported receiving suspicious Snapchat messages from someone posing as a female classmate from her school. The fake account offered the 11-year-old money to help “catch her boyfriend cheating.”
After the girl provided her Cash App information, Vann arrived at the victim’s Altamonte Springs apartment complex, playing the dual roles of both the fake classmate and the cheating boyfriend. Suspicious of the encounter, the victim took a quick photo of Vann standing in the parking lot wearing distinctive plaid pajama pants.
Vann then walked the girl to a secluded area of the complex, where he coerced her into sex acts while recording the abuse on his cell phone. An Altamonte Springs Police Department detective subsequently linked the Snapchat accounts to Vann and recovered the recorded videos, which showed the perpetrator wearing the exact same plaid pajama pants captured in the victim’s photo.
Jailhouse Plot to Bomb Detective and Kill Witness
While incarcerated at the Seminole County Jail in 2025 awaiting trial, Vann sought to derail his prosecution by arranging a hit on the key figures in his case: the 11-year-old victim, the lead detective, and the original prosecutor.
Vann approached a fellow inmate to organize the contract killings, offering his personal BMW automobile as payment. According to written instructions authored by Vann, he directed that the lead detective be assassinated using a remote-controlled car rigged with a pipe bomb.
However, a confidential informant alerted the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office, and the “hitman” Vann attempted to hire turned out to be an undercover deputy sheriff.
Following the revelation of the plot, the State Attorney’s Office reassigned the case to senior Assistant State Attorneys Stewart Stone, Domenick Leo, and Martine McCarthy. During the June trial, prosecutors introduced the solicitation evidence to demonstrate Vann’s clear consciousness of guilt regarding the underlying sexual battery charges.
Statement from the Prosecution: Following the sentencing hearing, Assistant State Attorney Domenick Leo emphasized the permanent protection provided by the sentence:
“While no jury verdict can undo the harm inflicted upon the child victim, today’s sentence ensures that the defendant was held accountable and that the community is protected from further harm.”