Inside the Gruesome "Deadpool Killer" Case

The CCPD said successful a quality merchandise astatine the clip that detectives, moving intimately with the State Attorney's Office, were awaiting trial results from the transgression laboratory and conclusions from the Lee County Medical Examiner's Office earlier they brought "additional transgression charges" against Wilson.

And connected Nov. 19, 2019, Wilson was indicted connected 2 counts of first-degree murder.

Lee County Sheriff's Office

Who were Wade Wilson's victims, Kristine Melton and Diane Ruiz?

Melton, who was primitively from Illinois, worked arsenic a waitress and was helping to attraction for her mother, Katie Melton, who was starting to amusement the effects of Alzheimer's disease, according to the victim's member Richard Melton.

"Kristine was her champion friend," Richard told Newsweek aft Wilson was sentenced connected Aug. 27. "They had java each morning."

He described his sister arsenic a "fun-loving and ace light-hearted person, arsenic good arsenic "super kind" and "non-judgmental."

The member said that their ma hadn't processed that Melton is dormant and persists successful believing she's "alive, well, and married."

Melton met Wilson connected the nighttime of Oct. 6, 2019, astatine Buddha LIVE, a barroom successful Fort Myers, according to the prosecution's accounting of events during Wilson's trial.

Melton was with her person and co-worker Stephanie Sailors. Per prosecutors, they stayed until closing and, on with Wilson, went to the location of Jayson Shepard, wherever they they spent a fewer hours earlier Sailors and Wilson went backmost to Melton's spot successful Cape Coral.

Sailors and Shepard some testified astatine Wilson's proceedings that the suspect and the unfortunate had enactment portion astatine Shepard's house.

When she near Melton's location aboriginal that night, Sailors testified, "everything was fine."

Melton "hugged me, kissed me, said she'd spot maine tomorrow," Sailors said.

Wilson told his begetter helium met a miss astatine a barroom and strangled her portion she was sleeping, according to a sentence bid obtained by E! News. (The prosecution aboriginal argued astatine proceedings that Melton had injuries indicating she woke up and tried to support herself.)

Police recovered Melton's assemblage astatine her location connected the nighttime of Oct. 7 aft her car was recovered successful Fort Myers and they went to cheque connected her.

Wilson's present ex-girlfriend Montanez testified astatine his proceedings successful June that she had been with him astatine Buddha LIVE but didn't privation to spell backmost to Shepard's house, and Wilson drove disconnected successful her car without permission. He started calling her the adjacent greeting earlier 8 a.m., she told the court, and helium came to her concern successful downtown Fort Myers.

He was driving Melton's achromatic Nissan Versa erstwhile helium showed up, a conveyance Montanez didn't recognize. Wilson tried to propulsion her into the car, Montanez continued, and erstwhile she resisted helium punched, slapped and choked her.

She testified that Wilson past dragged her upstairs to her concern and held her against the partition by her throat. But erstwhile helium deed her again, she continued, helium seemed startled by each the humor and she took the accidental to run. He near successful the Versa aft that, she said.

That morning, Fort Myers constabulary responded to 911 calls coming successful astir 8:50 a.m. to study a antheral and a pistillate fighting, with witnesses saying the feline was dragging a pistillate extracurricular of a business, according to a 2019 probable origin connection obtained by USA Today Network's News-Press.

Ruiz, meanwhile, was past seen walking connected her mode to her 10 a.m. bartending displacement astatine the Moose Lodge successful Cape Coral.

According to prosecutors, Wilson asked for directions to a adjacent schoolhouse arsenic a mode to lure her into the car. When she tried to get out, helium told police, helium started beating her, and past choked her. He said helium past pushed Ruiz retired of the car and ran her implicit with the conveyance astatine slightest 10 times portion she was inactive alive.

Co-workers called constabulary erstwhile Ruiz—who was engaged to beryllium joined and a parent of 2 sons, ages 29 and 19—failed to amusement up aft ne'er missing a displacement successful 5 years.

Ruiz's assemblage was recovered 3 days aboriginal successful a tract down a Sam's Club.

Cape Coral Police Sgt. Justin DeRosso, 1 of the officers who recovered her, testified that they saw "a azygous vulture circling an country to our east," and that's what led them to the close spot. 

"Diane was the heartbeat of the bar," Moose Lodge co-worker Linda Giancola told NBC 2 successful June. "She ever had everybody's back. She conscionable had that property that was truly magnifying. She has this truly large laughter that you could perceive it similar a mile away."

How did constabulary find Wade Wilson?

Fort Myers Police Officer Timothy McCormick testified during Wilson's execution proceedings that helium was portion of the hunt for Wilson pursuing his onslaught connected Montanez erstwhile helium spotted him parked extracurricular of Joe's Crab Shack astatine astir 3 p.m. connected Oct. 7, 2019.

Wilson told him helium was waiting for his woman and was different "uncooperative," McCormick said, explaining that helium couldn't springiness pursuit erstwhile the fishy drove distant due to the fact that helium was lone wanted connected a misdemeanor artillery charge. Police did not yet cognize astir the murders, the serviceman said.

Wilson's biologic father, Steven Testasecca, testified astatine proceedings that the suspect called him aggregate times connected Oct. 7 and started describing what he'd done that day, calling himself "a killer."

He admittedly didn't judge what Wilson was telling him astatine first, helium testified, but yet enactment the young antheral connected talker telephone truthful his woman could perceive and she relayed what helium was saying to police.

Testasecca (who said helium and Wilson's biologic parent were teenagers erstwhile they placed him for adoption) told the tribunal that helium asked Wilson to archer him wherever helium was, that he'd nonstop an Uber to prime him up. In court, Testasecca agreed with the prosecution's characterization that Wilson didn't amusement immoderate remorse erstwhile they spoke.

Cape Coral Police Department/Facebook

Did Wade Wilson accidental thing astir the murders?

While constabulary had his taped confession, Wilson denied having thing to bash with sidesplitting Melton and Ruiz successful a Nov. 15, 2019, phone interrogation from jailhouse with NBC 2.

When the interviewer asked if helium meant to accidental Melton was live and good erstwhile helium near her location successful her car, Wilson said, "Yes." He further said that Ruiz asked him for a thrust and helium dropped her disconnected astatine a autobus stop.

"I hold that their deaths are tragic and bittersweet but bash I find it unusual [that helium interacted with 2 women who ended up dormant successful 1 day]?" helium said. "No, I bash not, due to the fact that I cognize what I've done and I person not."

Speaking to the presumption again successful 2023, Wilson said "absolutely not" erstwhile asked if helium killed the women. 

"I'm not a monster," helium said. "I'm not a saint either by immoderate means. I've made atrocious decisions successful the past, of course. Everybody has."

What happened astatine Wade Wilson's execution trial?

The prosecution gave its opening statement June 10, 2024, and each broadside rested its lawsuit the pursuing day.

After Wilson killed Melton, Assistant State Attorney Sara Miller told the assemblage successful her closing argument, per the News-Press, "He didn't halt there. He was looking for much prey. He was the lion and she was his prey."

When helium killed Ruiz, Miller continued, "The suspect testified [to police] that helium saw her successful fear."

The authoritative concluded, "He killed 2 guiltless victims, 1 trying to spell retired and person a bully time, and the different trying to get to work."

Cape Coral Police Department Facebook

Why did Wade Wilson get the decease penalty?

During the punishment phase, Ruiz's lad Zane Romero, who was 19 erstwhile his ma was killed, testified for the prosecution that helium had conscionable made the precocious schoolhouse marching set and she was truthful excited to ticker his debut.

"I ne'er got to spot her successful the crowd," Romero said. "My ma volition ne'er get to spot maine get married."

Melton's relative Samantha Catomer lamented during her grounds that her relative—who was the godmother of Catomer's child—would "never acquisition motherhood, a relation she was calved to play."

Defense lawyer Kevin Shirley argued successful tribunal that Wilson's beingness should beryllium spared. He said that his client's intelligence authorities wasn't an excuse, but an mentation for his actions. 

Law & Crime Network / YouTube

On June 25, the assemblage came backmost aft astir 90 minutes voting 9-to-3 successful favour of decease arsenic punishment for sidesplitting Melton and 10-to-2 for Ruiz, agreeing successful some cases that the discourtesy was, per Florida law's definition of aggravating factors, "heinous, atrocious oregon cruel." (In 2023, Florida joined Alabama arsenic the lone states wherever juries don't person to beryllium unanimous to urge death; the ballot indispensable beryllium astatine slightest 8 successful favor.) 

In Ruiz's case, per the factors, they additionally recovered her execution to beryllium "cold, calculated and premeditated."

On Aug. 15, Lee County Circuit Judge Nicholas R. Thompson denied the defense's motion, filed July 3, for a caller trial.

At Wilson's Aug. 27 sentencing hearing, Shirley work a missive from his client's adoptive parents, Steve and Cindy Wilson, successful which they apologized to the victims' families and maintained that their son's cause addiction made him delusional, per the News-Press.

"Wade was a joyful child," they wrote. "Loved his parents." But, they continued, "The strategy failed him connected that fateful time successful 2019. Please spot it successful your bosom to not instrumentality our son."

Neurologist Dr. Mark Rubino testified during a Spencer proceeding (when a suspect facing decease has the close to entreaty straight to a judge) that images of Wilson's brain, arsenic good arsenic his show connected assorted cognitive tests, indicated helium whitethorn person encephalon harm that could marque him prone to impulsive behaviour without respect for consequences.

Medical Examiner Dr. Thomas Coyne, called to rebut Rubino, said that scans helium reviewed showed nary signs of structural defects, and that radical don't request to person encephalon harm to bash "evil things."

Judge Thompson subsequently sentenced Wilson to decease for each murder.

Shirley said aft tribunal that the condemnation was "kind of anticipated," telling Newsweek, "It takes rather a spot of other grounds successful a Spencer proceeding to person a justice to override a assemblage recommendation. The unfortunate happening is we didn't person a batch of different accusation to supply to the court. We gave what we have."

Why was Wade Wilson going viral?

Because accused (and convicted) murderers person their fans too, Wilson had his stock of supporters who started online petitions and fundraisers—"Our donation run aims to rise funds to assistance Wade Steven Wilson spend a reputable, specialized, and competent ineligible defence team," read an entreaty connected FUNDLY that arsenic of Sept. 6 had raised much than $86,000—as good arsenic took to TikTok to stock however unfair they thought the ineligible process had been successful Wilson's case.

The justice successful the lawsuit besides got letters from radical each implicit the satellite arguing wherefore Wilson deserved a beingness condemnation alternatively than death, according to NBC affiliate WYFF. 

Law & Crime Network / YouTube

Lee County Sheriff's Office