Fla. ex-cop set for execution in 1986 killing of 9

STARKE, Fla. (AP) — A former Florida police officer was scheduled to be executed Tuesday for the murder of nine people in a 1986 rampage over three months.

The execution by lethal injection of 56-year-old Manuel Pardo was set for 6 p.m. at Florida State Prison in Starke. A federal judge denied Pardo’s request for a stay Monday.

Officials said most of Pardo’s victims were involved with drugs. Pardo contended that he was doing the world a favor by killing them in 1986.

“I am a soldier, I accomplished my mission and I humbly ask you to give me the glory of ending my life and not send me to spend the rest of my days in state prison,” Pardo told jurors at his 1988 trial.

Pardo’s attorneys are trying to block his execution, arguing in federal appeals that he is mentally ill, something his trial attorney believed more than two decades ago.

Pardo was dubbed the “Death Row Romeo” after he corresponded with dozens of women and persuaded many to send him money.

Regino Musa, the brother of one of Pardo’s victims, said it’s difficult to grasp that the execution will finally happen. He and his elderly mother plan to attend.

“It’s about time. It’s been so long, you just want to get it over with,” said Musa, whose sister, Sara Musa, was killed by Pardo. “I still have nightmares and I don’t have words to describe it. I can’t believe that it’s happening.”

Pardo, a former Boy Scout and Navy veteran, began his law enforcement career in the 1970s with the Florida Highway Patrol, graduating at the top of his class at the academy. But he was fired from that agency in 1979 for falsifying traffic tickets. He was soon hired by the police department in Sweetwater, a small city in Miami-Dade County.

In 1981, Pardo was one of four Sweetwater officers charged with brutality, but the cases were dismissed.

He was fired four years later after he flew to the Bahamas to testify at the trial of a Sweetwater colleague who was accused of drug smuggling. Pardo lied, telling the court they were international undercover agents.

Then over a 92-day period in early 1986, Pardo committed a series of robberies, killing six men and three women. He took photos of the victims and recounted some details in his diary, which was found along with newspaper clippings about the murders. Pardo was linked to the killings after using credit cards stolen from the victims.

SportsPlus

Brownsdale

Cedar River project makes use of local company’s hardware

Education

‘How can I make a difference?’

Education

Photos: Austin HS holds mock election

Mower County

In Your Community: International Paper awards $2K to fire department

Mower County

In Your Community: Brownsdale Study Club enjoys Winona outing

Mower County

In Your Community: Horticulture Society invites public to next meeting

Mower County

In Your Community: Duplicate Bridge

Mower County

In Your Community: Mower County Senior Center

Crime, Courts & Emergencies

Convictions: Oct. 14-21

News

US employers added just 12,000 jobs last month as hurricanes and strikes sharply reduce payrolls

Mower County

Rochester man charged with criminal sexual conduct

News

Musk tests the role of money in U.S. politics with multimillion-dollar effort to back Trump

News

Should Minnesota continue to put lottery dollars toward the environment?

Mower County

Photos: Tricks, treats and smiles at Comforcare

Crime, Courts & Emergencies

Woman in pull-tab scheme to serve jail time

Crime, Courts & Emergencies

APD searching for armed robbery suspect

Mower County

Active Transportation Planning Assistance grants now available

Blooming Prairie

Local FFA Member Awarded National American FFA Degree

Mower County

Austin Noon Lions kick up a party with 80th anniversary Hootenanny

Mower County

Austin Page Turners make selection for 23rd annual city wide reading event

Business

Kilpatrick selected as CRC’s newest regional business manager

Education

10 tutors needed in Austin to help students with reading, math

Business

KSMQ selected for Public Media Digital Transformation Program

News

A decade of racial justice activism transformed politics, but landmark reforms remain elusive