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Daniel Traina (8 of Diamonds, Florida)

August 12, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

On May 25, 2021, 49-year-old Daniel Traina walked into a 7-Eleven in Lake Park, Florida, tried to use his debit card at the ATM and then at the counter for a candy bar, and was declined both times. He walked out the front door toward the gas pumps and vanished. In an era of cameras and phones and digital trails, a six-foot-four man who was well known in his small West Palm Beach suburb simply disappeared. Five years later, his brother David still has no idea what happened—and the case has only gotten stranger.

The Man Who Was Hard to Miss

Daniel Traina grew up on the Jersey Shore, the little brother David always protected. When the family moved to Florida in the 1980s, Daniel eventually grew to six-foot-four with a size 17 shoe. He worked in email marketing, bought a house with his wife in Loxahatchee, and raised three kids. After a divorce in 2008, he bought a small two-bedroom home in Lake Park with cash—no mortgage. He loved fishing, paddleboarding, and the easy coastal life.

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What you'll learn

  • 1 (00:40) **Daniel Traina: The Vanishing from a 7-Eleven** - Introduction to the case of 49-year-old Daniel Traina, a 6'4" well-known figure in Lake Park, Florida, who vanished after walking out of a 7-Eleven in May 2021.
  • 2 (02:28) **The Call That Changed Everything** - David Treina, Daniel's older brother, recounts learning his brother was missing, four days after speaking to him on his birthday.
  • 3 (04:47) **Daniel's Life Before the Disappearance** - A portrait of Daniel's life: his career in email marketing, his divorce in 2008, and his move to a small, paid-off house in Lake Park near his beloved fishing spot.
  • 4 (08:40) **The Last Known Contact and the Missing Person Report** - On May 25, 2021, David calls Daniel to wish him a happy birthday. Four days later, he learns from his sister that Daniel is missing.
  • 5 (10:59) **The Suspicious Scene at Daniel's House** - David confronts Roy Smith and his elderly uncle, Sam Perry, who are living in the house and acting as if nothing is wrong.
  • 6 (12:52) **The Investigation Begins: Detective Weissman Takes Over** - Detective Jeff Weissman inherits the case two weeks in. He finds no note and no clues at Daniel's house, even after a search warrant using a blood-detecting chemical (Blue Star).
  • 7 (14:45) **Roy's Story: The Fear of a Jealous Boyfriend** - Roy tells detectives that Daniel was afraid of a man whose girlfriend he had slept with. Daniel left his phone because he was scared the man was tracking him.

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Show Notes

Our card this week is Daniel Traina, the 8 of Diamonds from Florida.

49-year-old Daniel Traina was hard to miss.  The Six-foot-four happy-go-lucky guy was always bopping around the West Palm Beach suburb of Lake Park. … well known to bartenders, store clerks, and neighbors.  

So it was mind-boggling when, in May of 2021, Daniel walked out of a 7-Eleven next to Florida’s busy Federal Highway … and vanished into the sticky, humid night… leaving behind NO clues. 

And as investigators have tried to retrace Daniel’s final movements and work their way through those closest to him, the case has taken on a distinctly South Florida feel. An ocean-side town, a 7-Eleven sign glowing in the dark, a cast of eccentric characters, conflicting stories, and a mystery that, five years later, still has everyone asking: how did someone who was so hard to miss vanish without a trace? 

  • If you know anything that can help the Traina family get answers about what happened to Daniel, call the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office at (561) 688-4000. Or you can submit an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers of Palm Beach County through their website at crimestoppersPBC.com.

 

View source material and photos for this episode at: thedeckpodcast.com/daniel-traina

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