Manslaughter Case Dropped in Florida Bondage Death

On September 5, 2022, Osceola County deputies found Todd Reade dead in a garage apartment in Kissimmee, Florida, dressed in bondage gear. Four months later they arrested Bryant Scott Demelo, the last person known to have been with him, and charged him with manslaughter. By October 2023 prosecutors had quietly dropped that charge with a one page court notice, and no public explanation. No one has been convicted of causing Reade’s death. Demelo has not been convicted of any offense in connection with Reade’s death and is presumed innocent of it.

The Scene, September 5, 2022

According to the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office, Violent Crimes detectives and the Medical Examiner’s Office responded on September 5, 2022, to a report of a suspicious death at an address in Kissimmee, a city about 20 miles south of Orlando. The dead man was wearing bondage gear and appeared to have trauma to his body.

The arrest affidavit, later released in redacted form and reported by The Smoking Gun, gave more detail. Reade was found on an ottoman covered with a garbage bag. He was masked and wore a bondage harness, a leather collar and wrist restraints. Blood had dripped onto the carpet below. The apartment was littered with sex toys, and the affidavit described him as having been found “bound and gagged.”

The Victim

Todd Reade was 43, a management consultant. The Toronto Sun reported that he was from Alberta. The Smoking Gun described him as a Canadian who split his time with Florida.

The Last Contact

Detectives determined that Demelo was the last person who had been in contact with Reade. When they interviewed him, Demelo said the two had met through an online chat group for sexual encounters and arranged to meet in person. The affidavit quotes him as saying he met Reade “through the internet on a site for sexual deviants.”

A search of Reade’s iPhone turned up text messages in which Demelo agreed to “sexual favors in return for money,” according to the affidavit. The phone had been positioned to record the encounter. It held videos and images of Reade with a bone shaped gag in his mouth, while Demelo wore a dog mask and a silver chain with a bone pendant.

Demelo’s Account

Demelo told detectives he arrived with methamphetamine and later injected some of it into Reade. He called the four hour encounter “sweet” and said the two “attempted to live stream the encounter but encountered difficulties.”

His central claim was self defense. In the sheriff’s office’s words: “According to Mr. Demelo, during oral sex, the victim bit down on his penis, which caused Mr. Demelo to beat the victim.” He said he feared he would be severely injured because Reade would not release his jaw, and that he shouted at Reade to stop biting and open his mouth.

He told detectives he could not identify what “caused Todd to bite his penis.” He suggested it “could have been influenced or caused by the methamphetamine Todd had consumed rectally just prior to the fellatio on the ottoman.” The affidavit describes Demelo as a military veteran who retired with PTSD, and says that he told detectives he “feels he has a healthy mindset.”

What the Sheriff’s Office Said Happened Next

According to the affidavit, the beating left Reade unconscious with severe injuries. “Demelo then fled the scene without calling 911 or rendering aid,” the sheriff’s office said.

Before he left, according to the affidavit, Demelo, who knew Reade was unconscious, “collected his various sex toys from the living room and bedroom” but “may have accidentally taken some sex toys and props belonging to Todd.”

A few hours later he sent Reade a text message. “Yo I’m so sorry man…You almost bit my cock off and I couldn’t get you off me,” it read. “I got scared and had to get you off some how…Lmk know youre alright pls. U were sleeping when I left.” The affidavit concluded: “Todd ultimately passed away as a result of his encounter with Bryant.”

Cause of Death

The sources describe the medical findings slightly differently. The Smoking Gun reported that the coroner’s report gave the cause of death as strangulation, with “blunt force trauma to the head” listed as a significant contributing condition. Orlando News, summarizing the sheriff’s office, said the medical examiner ruled the death was caused by blunt force trauma and strangulation. ClickOrlando reported that the medical examiner found Reade “was also strangled.”

None of the fetched sources explains how the strangulation fit Demelo’s account of a beating in response to a bite. That gap is one of the open questions in the case.

The Arrest, January 3, 2023

After the medical examiner’s ruling, detectives obtained a warrant for Demelo’s arrest on a charge of manslaughter. On Tuesday, January 3, 2023, he was arrested in Seminole County on that warrant. The Smoking Gun reported that he was picked up at a shopping mall. He was 34 and lived in Orlando.

Deputies said he had methamphetamine on him when he was arrested. The Smoking Gun reported that a post arrest frisk turned up a Ziploc bag of meth, which led to a separate felony drug charge. He was held in Seminole County to await extradition to Osceola County. ClickOrlando and FOX 35 reported the arrest on January 6 and 7, 2023, citing the sheriff’s office.

The Law He Was Charged Under

Florida defines manslaughter in section 782.07 of its statutes as “the killing of a human being by the act, procurement, or culpable negligence of another, without lawful justification according to the provisions of chapter 776,” where the killing is not excusable homicide or murder. It is a second degree felony.

Chapter 776 is Florida’s self defense law. Under section 776.012, a person may use deadly force if he “reasonably believes that using or threatening to use such force is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm” to himself. A person may use non deadly force when he reasonably believes it is necessary to defend against another’s “imminent use of unlawful force.”

Demelo’s account to detectives went directly to that question: he said he struck Reade because he feared great bodily harm. A self defense claim would not explain why he left Reade unconscious without calling for help, but leaving a scene is not itself the manslaughter charge. Whether prosecutors weighed any of this is not known, because they did not say.

“Not Suitable” for Prosecution

The State Attorney’s Office never filed formal charges. According to court records reported by The Smoking Gun on October 9, 2023, an assistant state attorney filed a one page “No Information” notice with the court, concluding the manslaughter case was “not suitable” to be pursued. The notice said the declination “is taken to clear the records and to release subject’s bond.” It gave no further reason.

The decision was not announced. The Smoking Gun reported that, unlike the arrest, it was not the subject of a press release and had drawn no media notice. The affidavit itself became public only after a records request that took court officials several months to complete. The Toronto Sun picked up the story after The Smoking Gun’s report.

The Drug Case

The methamphetamine possession charge from the January arrest went on separately. As of October 2023, Demelo had pleaded not guilty to it and was free on $3,000 bond. At a hearing in late August 2023, a judge granted his lawyer’s motion to withdraw over “irreconcilable differences” and ordered Demelo to find new counsel. His next court date was set for October 11, 2023.

We could not find a later public report on how the drug case ended, and Osceola County court records were not available to us. Its outcome is unconfirmed.

Timeline

• September 5, 2022: Reade is found dead in a garage apartment in Kissimmee.
• Between September 2022 and January 2023: The medical examiner rules on the cause of death, and detectives obtain a manslaughter warrant.
• January 3, 2023: Demelo is arrested in Seminole County with methamphetamine.
• January 6 and 7, 2023: The arrest is reported, citing the sheriff’s office.
• Late August 2023: A judge lets Demelo’s lawyer withdraw from the drug case.
• By October 9, 2023: The State Attorney files a “No Information” notice on the manslaughter charge.
• October 11, 2023: Demelo’s scheduled court date on the drug charge.

Legal Status

Bryant Scott Demelo was charged with manslaughter in Todd Reade’s death, but prosecutors declined to file formal charges, and the manslaughter case was dropped by October 2023. He has not been convicted of any offense in connection with Reade’s death. His separate methamphetamine possession case was pending as of October 2023, and its outcome is not confirmed in the sources we reviewed. Prosecutors have not publicly explained why the manslaughter case was dropped.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources