From ABC7 Chicago · · 2m
Florida's 15th execution and the Hog Trail case
A man died by lethal injection for one 1990s killing, while six other bodies in the same woods stayed unsolved.
In brief
A man died by lethal injection for one 1990s killing, while six other bodies in the same woods stayed unsolved. Conahan was executed for a single murder, but the Hog Trail killings he was tied to were never charged, so most of those families got no verdict at all. Originally reported by ABC7 Chicago.
Put to death at 72
Daniel Owen Conahan Jr. was pronounced dead at 6:12 p.m. Thursday after a three-drug lethal injection at Florida State Prison near Starke.
The killing he died for
He was sentenced for the 1996 kidnapping and strangling of Richard Allen Montgomery, whose mutilated body turned up in woods in southwest Florida.
No final words
The warden asked if he had a last statement. Conahan said "No sir." The drugs began at 6:01 p.m., he panted and twitched, then went still.
“The team warden asked Conahan if he had any final statement, and Conahan replied, "No sir."”
The busiest death chamber
Florida has carried out more than half of the 25 executions in the U.S. this year, under Gov. Ron DeSantis, who leaves office in January.
Bodies in the hog trail
Hunters found the first body in February 1994. At least five more turned up over three years in swampy Charlotte County woods, north of Fort Myers.
A killer targeting the homeless
Most remains were badly decomposed, though Montgomery was found within a day of his death. Investigators concluded the victims were homeless men.
The photo-shoot lure
A man jailed for stealing Conahan's car said Conahan drove him to a remote spot and offered cash to pose nude. He fled in the car after spotting a knife.
A survivor in Fort Myers
Another man said a stranger offering money for nude photos tied him to a tree and tried to strangle him. Conahan was charged with attempted murder, then with Montgomery's murder.
Convicted by one judge
Conahan waived his right to a jury and was convicted of murder and kidnapping by a judge in August 1999. He always called the evidence circumstantial.
Never charged again
A sheriff's report said all victims found within a 10-mile radius were likely killed by one person. Eight more bodies surfaced in 2007. No further charges came.
“Investigators at the time publicly identified Conahan as a person of interest, but he was never charged.”
A sister's statement
Joan Rodemann, whose brother William Melaragno was a Hog Trail victim, said her family would celebrate the execution. Eleven victim family members attended.
“Finally, the gates of HELL will open and you can join the other soulless spawns of the devil.”
The one thing
Conahan was executed for a single murder, but the Hog Trail killings he was tied to were never charged, so most of those families got no verdict at all.
