[imagesource:twitter/azfamily]

A sicko self-described as the “Zombie Hunter”, who would drive around in a car spattered with fake blood, has been sentenced to death for the brutal murder of two women around 30 years ago.

The case has remained cold, but finally, they convicted Bryan Patrick Miller of sexually attacking and fatally stabbing two young Phoenix women in separate killings in the early 1990s.

Bryan was sentenced to death by a judge, on Wednesday 7 June 2023, having been convicted in April on two counts of first-degree murder, kidnapping and attempted sexual assault, CBS News reported.

His first victim, 21-year-old Angela Brosso, vanished while riding her bicycle along the Arizona Canal in Phoenix in 1992, the night before her 22nd birthday.

Police believe the killer knocked Brasso off her bicycle, stabbed her and dragged her off the trail, leaving her naked body decapitated near the bike trail.

“With his actions on that night, he murdered my angel, he ripped my heart, and I will never, ever be the same,” said Linda Brosso, Angela’s mother, according to CBS affiliate KPHO-TV.

Ten months after Brosso’s death, in September 1993, Bryan struck again, with investigators finding 17-year-old Melanie Bernas floating in the canal. She was not decapitated but her bike was missing.

“Words cannot begin to explain the level of excruciating pain we experience every single day since her murder,” Burnas’ sister, Jill Canetta, said in court, according to KPHO-TV. “We live without her smile, her hugs, her companionship. We live without her love.”

The New York Post mentioned that at the time of his arrest, Bryan was known in Phoenix’s sci-fi and horror convention community as “the Zombie Hunter”:

Miller would regularly dress up as the apocalyptic character, attending events in a helmet, mask, and goggles while carrying a large fake gun, according to the Arizona Republic. He also would drive around Phoenix in a modified police car spattered with fake blood, the outlet said.

An acquaintance of Miller’s through the Arizona Steampunk Society testified during his trial that the “Zombie Hunter” character was inspired by the “Resident Evil” film and video game franchise.

Mike Syfritt testified that Bryan “built this persona around the survivalist, surviving a zombie apocalypse” and built his car “basically to mow down zombies”.

The authorities eventually connected the DNA evidence collected in the aftermath of both crimes to Bryan, arresting him in 2015. But it took years before he was found mentally competent to stand trial.

Prosecutors argued that he deserved the death penalty because the murders of the two women were especially brutal, driven by pure sexual sadism.

“The defendant did not just murder them. He brutalized them and he evaded capture for over 20 years,” said Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Suzanne Cohen.

Speaking for the first time on May 22, Bryan said he was not looking for sympathy, adding that he “cannot imagine what pain [the family and the friends of the victims] have endured for all these years”.

Get outta here, Bryan.

[sources:cbsnews&nypost]