Wade Wilson, known as the Deadpool Killer, was sentenced to death on Tuesday, August 27, for brutally murdering two Florida women “for the sake of killing.” The 30-year-old tattooed killer from Fort Myers appeared stoic as Judge Nicholas Thompson of Lee Circuit Court sentenced him to death.
“The evidence shows that the murders were heinous, cruel and savage and that the second murder was cold-blooded, calculated and premeditated,” District Judge Nicholas Thompson said in the courtroom, according to the New York Post.
In June, Wilson was found guilty of killing Kristine Melton (35) and Diane Ruiz (43) on an October night in 2019. The jury had recommended that he be sentenced to death.
Who is Wade Wilson?
Wilson shares the same name as the Marvel antihero made famous by Ryan Reynolds. On the fateful night, he first strangled Melton in her home after engaging in sexual intercourse while under the influence of drugs, prosecutors said. He then stole Melton's car and called his girlfriend, 41-year-old Melissa Montanez, using the victim's phone. He later attacked her, but she refused to get in the car.
Wilson then encountered Ruiz asking for directions in Cape Coral. He invited Ruiz into the car, strangled her, and threw her out of the vehicle. He later returned and ran over Ruiz “until she looked like spaghetti,” according to testimony at the trial.
“This case was about killing for the sake of killing,” Deputy District Attorney Andreas Gardiner said in court. “Strangulation is the epitome of a person's life slipping through their hands.”
During Wilson's five years in prison, he received thousands of X-rated photos and love letters. This bizarre trend is not uncommon, as notorious serial killers Ted Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer and Richard Ramirez were among the violent people who received such attention in prison.
In Wilson's case, the judge received several letters asking him to overlook Wilson's tattooed face because, many believed, he was a different person when on medication. Wilson's lawyers claimed he suffered brain damage from drug addiction and even feared abandonment because his biological parents had given him up for adoption.
The murderer's adoptive parents urged the court not to sentence him to death. In a letter, the parents explained that “the man is still here.” “Please keep this in your heart and do not take our son away from us,” they wrote.
Additionally, Wilson was found guilty of grand larceny, burglary, assault and petty theft.
Melton's cousin, who asked to be identified as Samantha Kelly, reportedly said the time between the deaths and the verdict felt like “five years of agony.” Ruiz's father, Felix Ruiz, said he wanted to be present at Wilson's execution. “I didn't get to tell her I loved her,” Felix said, according to The News-Press. “I miss her.”
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