Jury recommends death penalty for ex-prison guard trainee who murdered 5 women inside Florida bank

Associated Press

A jury has recommended that a former prison guard trainee be sentenced to death for his execution-style murders of five women inside a Florida bank five years ago. The jury voted 9-3 Wednesday to recommend that Zephen Xaver receive the death penalty for the Jan. 23, 2019, massacre at the SunTrust Bank in Sebring. Xaver stared straight ahead and showed no emotion as the verdicts were read. The final decision rests with a circuit judge who could reject the recommendation and sentence Xaver to life without parole. Under a 2023 Florida law, the jury only had to vote 8-4 in favor of the death penalty for a judge to impose that sentence. No sentencing date has been set.