Dateline: Out There in the Dark - 5 harrowing details about Brandy Daniels' homicide, revisited

Brandy Daniels was a 25-year-old mother living in Nashport, Ohio, when her life ended violently on May 5, 2014. She was found shot to death in the driver’s seat of her vehicle outside her McCaslin Road home, the engine still running, with spent shell casings scattered nearby. Nearly a decade later, Dateline NBC revisits the case in its latest episode, Out There in the Dark, airing tonight at 10 p.m. ET, reported by Dennis Murphy.

This wasn’t a random killing. Investigators quickly pieced together a calculated setup involving Brandy’s estranged husband, Josh Daniels, who had moved to Ohio with her from Alaska the year before. Their relationship had deteriorated, and by December 2013, Brandy had filed for divorce. What followed was months of planning that ended in her death.

Josh Daniels eventually pleaded guilty to aggravated murder and several felony charges, including aggravated robbery, stalking, and conspiracy. His associate, Sirius Underwood, who pulled the trigger, entered an Alford plea and was also sentenced to life without parole.

The episode digs into how the investigation crossed state lines and took years to resolve, and how the people closest to Brandy Daniels were the ones plotting her death. These are the most disturbing details the show brings back to light.

5 harrowing details about Brandy Daniels' homicide

Dateline (Image has been sourced from NBC)

1) She was shot multiple times while sitting in her car, just feet from her home

Brandy Daniels never made it out of her vehicle the night she was killed. Around 10:50 p.m. on May 5, 2014, her sister found her slumped in the driver’s seat outside their McCaslin Road residence in Nashport. The engine was still running. Several spent shell casings were found near the vehicle. She had been shot multiple times at close range. There was no sign of a robbery.

Police determined quickly that it wasn’t a random act. It was clear the shooter had been waiting. This wasn’t a crime of impulse. Brandy Daniels had just returned home when she was ambushed and left to die in her car. Forensic teams confirmed the shots were fired from outside, through the driver’s window.

The placement of the casings and the bullet trajectories told officers the shooter didn’t rush. Whoever pulled the trigger knew what they were doing and had time to finish the job. The fact that the car was still idling when her sister discovered her body only underlined how fast everything happened. She never had a chance to react, and no one nearby heard enough to help.

2) A single text message confirmed the murder to her husband

Josh Daniels didn’t witness the shooting, but he knew the moment it was done. After Brandy was killed, Josh received a text message from Sirius Underwood that simply said “done.” That one-word message confirmed what they had been planning for months. Investigators discovered the message during a forensic search of Josh’s phone records.

It was sent at 10:51 p.m.—almost the exact time Brandy Daniels’s sister found her body. The phone data lined up with the timeline of the murder. There was no attempt to hide the communication. Authorities said it showed premeditation in the clearest terms. Josh didn’t panic, didn’t call 911, didn’t even try to cover it up. The message was short because everything had already been arranged.

By then, Brandy Daniels had filed for divorce, and Josh had already been charged in multiple robbery cases. Prosecutors used the text to show that Josh was not only involved but had orchestrated the killing. It was the kind of evidence that didn’t need explaining. That one word—“done”—ended a life and sealed a conviction.

3) The killer, Sirius Underwood, already had a violent history

Sirius Underwood wasn’t a new name to law enforcement in Zanesville. By the time he was arrested for Brandy Daniels’ murder, he had already been linked to several robbery cases and was a convicted felon prohibited from carrying firearms.

In fact, his criminal history played a big role in the charges filed against him. He eventually entered Alford pleas for multiple felonies, aggravated murder, robbery, theft, weapons violations, and tampering with evidence.

That plea meant he didn’t admit guilt but accepted the conviction based on the evidence. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole for 38 years. The court didn’t show leniency. Investigators said Underwood had been recruited by Josh Daniels to carry out the killing.

Surveillance, phone records, and testimony tied him directly to the crime. The murder wasn’t impulsive—it was planned, discussed, and executed with intent. Underwood’s familiarity with violent crime made him a willing participant in something far worse than a robbery.

4) Josh Daniels stalked Brandy for weeks before the shooting

One of the most disturbing revelations was how long Josh Daniels had been tracking Brandy Daniels’s movements. Prosecutors charged him with menacing by stalking, and it wasn’t an exaggeration. He had been monitoring her daily routines, learning when she left, when she got back, and who she spent time with.

She had filed for divorce in December 2013, and things had been escalating ever since. Court records showed that Josh had started planning the murder well before May. He didn’t just want her gone—he wanted it done in a way where he wouldn’t be the one pulling the trigger.

That’s where Underwood came in. Investigators also noted the calculated pattern of behavior in the weeks leading up to the killing. Josh wasn’t living with Brandy at the time, but he stayed close enough to know her schedule. Prosecutors used those details to show how deeply premeditated the murder was. It wasn’t rage. It was methodical.

5) The murder was tied to a larger pattern of violent robberies

Brandy Daniels’ murder wasn’t an isolated crime. Both Josh Daniels and Sirius Underwood were tied to a string of violent robberies across the Zanesville area from 2012 to 2014.

These included high-dollar thefts from Gabriel Brothers and Tumbleweed Restaurant, with restitution ordered totaling over $17,000. The court charged Josh with engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity—a serious felony that underscored the organized nature of their crimes.

This wasn’t just about a bad marriage ending in violence. Josh and Sirius had built a history of working together, planning robberies, and avoiding arrests. Prosecutors said the same level of planning went into Brandy’s murder.

What made the case of Brandy Daniels different was the personal motive underneath it. But the structure—the surveillance, the timing, the escape—matched the same techniques they used in their robberies. In the end, the case against them didn’t rest on emotion. It rested on evidence of two men who had crossed a line from theft to murder without blinking.