Florida Executes Man for Family Murders
A man who murdered his wife and two children has become the ninth person executed in Florida this year, following administration of lethal drugs on Thursday.
Edward Zakrzewski, 60, was sentenced to death on June 9, 1994, for the horrific killings at his home in Okaloosa County. Reports indicate that he was executed this week.
A veteran of the US Air Force, Zakrzewski murdered his family in a fit of rage after his wife sought a divorce. He attacked her with a blunt object and later killed his children—aged 7 and 5—by strangling one and using a rope. When he thought his wife had survived, he then struck her with a machete.
The Florida Corrections Bureau updated that Zakrzewski’s execution took place at 6:12 PM. According to the Associated Press, this marks a significant point as it is the highest number of executions in a single year since the US Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty decades ago.
Zakrzewski was put to death at the Florida State Prison near Stark. In his last words, he expressed gratitude to the “good people of Sunshine Province.”
Retired assistant state attorney Bobby Elmore recently shared details about the case. After the murders, Zakrzewski fled to Hawaii and lived under an alias within a small church community. His identity was revealed when community members recognized him on the TV show “Unsolved Mysteries,” leading to his surrender to law enforcement.
On the topic of the death penalty, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis remarked that he wants to provide closure to the victims’ families. He stated that the crimes committed were so heinous that the only fitting punishment was the death penalty.
In a related story this year, another inmate, Donald Dilbeck, garnered attention for his final words, which included curses directed at DeSantis. Dilbeck had been convicted of a 1990 murder and noted that he was “really ruined” in his youth, expressing his disdain before his execution.
Looking ahead, the next executions in Florida will involve Kale Bates, scheduled for August 19, who was convicted of killing a woman in 1982, and Curtis Wyndham, found guilty of three murders in 1992, whose execution date has been set for August 28.
