WADE Wilson murdered Kristine Melton and Diane Ruiz in October 2019.
The two women were brutally killed in Cape Coral, Florida.
Who were Kristine Melton and Diane Ruiz?
Wade Wilson, now 30, murdered Kristine Melton, 35, and Diane Ruiz, 43, on October 7, 2019.
According to The News-Press, Melton was raised in Illinois. She and a friend moved to Cape Coral, where she worked as a waitress.
Per NBC2Melton’s neighbors described her as sweet and friendly.
“She was carefree, helped someone, a really nice person,” Debbie McCabe said, according to the publication.
According to NBC2, Ruiz worked as a waiter and bartender at the Moose Lodge in Cape Coral.
Co-workers and clients of the mother-of-two bride shared kind words about Ruiz after her brutal murder.
“She didn’t have a bad bone in her body. She didn’t deserve to end up there like that,” Ernie Carroll said, according to NBC2.
As The news press reported, during the penalty case in Wilson’s capital murder trial – which began on June 24, 2024 – witnesses remembered the victims of the convicted killer’s heinous crimes.
Melton’s cousin and best friend, Samantha Catomer, testified through tears.
According to the outlet, she said that Melton liked to dress up and that Halloween was one of her favorite holidays.
“He threw her away like she was trash,” Catomer said of Wilson.
She later added that Melton “was precious, not only to me, but to everyone who knew her.”
Catomer also said Melton had a quick wit and that people felt safe and understood around her, according to the post.
“It was a relief just to sit next to her,” she said.
Catomer also shared that Melton was his son’s godmother, which was the latter’s “greatest honor.”
“Kristine will never experience motherhood, a role she was born to play,” Catomer said.
She added that Melton enjoyed traveling and loved “seeing the world.”
According to The News-Press, Catomer said Melton lived less than a block from her mother, who moved to Maryland with one of Melton’s other brothers after being horrified by the murder.
The media outlet reported that Melton’s mother was not present during the trial.
“Losing Kristine is like losing your child. I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy,” Catomer said.
Catomer also said Melton’s cat sat next to his “disintegrated body” when police arrived.
“Look at her. I know you can,” Catomer said as he looked at Wilson.
The jurors saw the photos on a screen, according to the publication.
The News-Press reported that Ruiz was killed just days before she was to see her then-freshman son, Zane Romero, debut in his high school band program.
“I could never see her in the crowd,” Romero — whose only living father was Ruiz before his murder — said during the trial.
Romero said his engaged mother would be married within a few months.
“She was so close to getting everything she wanted,” he said.
An emotional Romero cited the achievements Ruiz had lost due to her murder, including seeing him complete three years of marching band, be accepted into every college he applied to and win awards for his photography.
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“My mother will never see me get married,” he said.
According to the outlet, Romero said he was taken to the intensive care unit during his freshman year of college after being involved in a serious car accident.
“I couldn’t call my mom,” he said.
Romero looked through a series of photos he took of and with his Ruiz and became emotional as he pointed to a specific photo Ruiz took of him, according to the publication.
Romero said it was the only time he let his mother photograph him, and he did so as a Mother’s Day gift.
Who is Wade Wilson?
Wade Wilson is a convicted murderer from Fort Myers, Florida.
Fox News reported that he went viral on social media for his “smug and soulless” behavior in court.
“Throughout this statement, Wilson showed no emotion. He either sat there coldly or whispered to his lawyers,” NBC2 said.
Wilson also gained attention online for his facial tattoos, which NBC2 reported his lawyers requested he could cover with makeup during jury selection and his trial.
According to the publication, the motion argued: “Wilson has numerous and varied tattoos on his face, including ‘dots,’ swastikas, and other tattoos that may be objectionable to potential jury members.
“He would like to appear presentable to the jury that will decide his guilt or innocence, or whether he will live or die.”
Despite getting the judge’s approval for both the makeup and the haircut, it did not appear during jury selection and the trial that Wilson ever wore the makeup, NBC2 reported.
On June 12, 2024, a Lee County jury convicted Wilson of the first-degree murder of Melton and Ruiz.
According to The news presshe was also found guilty of robbery, assault, robbery and petty theft.
According to the outlet, Melton and her friend Stephanie Sailors met Wilson, who was 25 at the time, at a Cape Coral bar on October 7, 2019. The three went to Melton’s duplex that morning.
After the sailors left, Wilson murdered Melton by strangulation while she slept in her bed before stealing her car.
Shortly after killing Melton, Wilson asked Ruiz for directions to a school in the area after seeing her walking down a Cape Coral street, according to the publication.
The News-Press reported, “Wilson lured her into the car and when she tried to get out, he beat and strangled her before pushing her out of the car and running her over 10 to 20 times.”
Three days later, Ruiz’s body was found in a field, with vultures circling overhead, near the exit.
When will Wade Wilson be sentenced?
Following his conviction on June 12, 2024, the jury recommended that Wilson be sentenced to the death penalty after just over an hour and a half of deliberations, according to NBC2.
According to The News-Press, it will be up to Judge Nicholas Thompson to decide whether the convicted killer will receive the death penalty.
Wilson’s sentencing is scheduled for July 23, 2024.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
