Arizona man found guilty of 2021 murder in Panama City Beach

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. ( WMBB ) – A four-day trial ended on Friday when a jury found an Arizona man guilty of strangling his friend in their hotel room during a trip to Panama City Beach.

According to a news release, 43-year-old Scottie Jay Black was found guilty of second-degree murder for the death of 41-year-old Tyrell James Sagg.

On October 3, 2021, officials said Black and Sagg's girlfriend reported finding Sagg dead in their hotel room, during the time the three were apparently on vacation.

However, there were no visible injuries to the victim, officials wrote.

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Investigators said an autopsy later showed the victim had internal injuries consistent with being strangled. Further investigation showed Black and the woman later withdrew money using the victim's ATM card and returned to Arizona.

No one else entered or left the room during the time the victim was killed, officials said.

During the trial, prosecutors called 12 witnesses, including a Navajo Nation Police investigator who helped locate the suspect and two Panama City Beach Police investigators who flew to Arizona to interview Black.

Officials stated during that 5-hour interview, the defendant's story changed multiple times and was played in full for jurors.

"Mr. Black thought he had done a good job of covering up his crime," Prosecutor Peter Overstreet said. "However the testimony of the Medical Examiner (Jay Radke) and the extremely thorough investigation of the Panama City Beach Police Department's criminal investigators led the jury seeing the truth of what occurred that fateful night in the hotel room."

The jury deliberated for about 1 hour and 45 minutes, and sentencing is set for November 21.