Bryan Patrick Miller, 50, who called himself the "Zombie Killer," was convicted in April for the deaths of 22-year-old Angelo Brosso in 1992 and 17-year-old Melanie Bernas, in 1993.
A 50-year-old Phoenix man who calls himself the "Zombie Hunter" will be put to death for the murders of two young women in the early 1990s officials said.
Bryan Patrick Miller was handed the death penalty on Wednesday after having been convicted in April on two counts of first-degree murder, kidnapping and attempted sexual assault, for taking the lives of 22-year-old Angela Brosso and 17-year-old Melanie Bernas, according to CBS News.
Miller had pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity and did not testify in the double murder trial that began in October 2022. He waived his right to a jury trial, at which point Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Suzanne Cohen declared him guilty, CBS News reported.
Police alleged Miller shoved Brasso off her bicycle in November 1992, on the eve of her 22nd birthday, as she was riding along the Arizona Canal in North Phoenix. Her body was found naked and decapitated near the trail, according to the news outlet.
Ten months later, in September 1993, Bernas' body was found floating in the Arizona Canal. She had last been seen riding her bike along the same trail.
While Miller acknowledged he lived not far from where the killings took place and said he rode his bike along the same paths, he denied having any involvement in the murders. According to authorities, DNA evidence collected at both crime scenes led investigators to Miller, who was arrested in January 2015.
Jill Canetta, Burnas' sister, said in court, "Words cannot begin to explain the level of excruciating pain we experience every single day since her murder," according to CBS affiliate KPHO-TV.
Brosso's mother, Linda Brosso, said, "With his actions that night, he murdered my angel, he ripped my heart, and I will never, ever be the same," reported KPHO-TV.
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