Victim’s families react after double murderer is sentenced to death

Family and friends are remembering two women who were brutally murdered by the same man after a judge sentenced him to death on Tuesday afternoon.

Kristine Melton and Diane Ruiz, two smiling faces ripped away at the hands of a killer.

“I didn’t get to say I love her, and I miss her,” said Felix, Diana Ruiz’s father.

Choking back tears, the family spoke of the two Cape Coral women Wade Wilson brutally murdered in 2019.

“This has been five years of agony,” said Samantha, Kristine Melton’s cousin. “We’re done being quiet.”

No action was louder than when the judge sealed Wilson’s fate Tuesday with a death sentence.

“This case wasn’t about Mr. Wilson. This case was about Diane Ruiz. This case was about Kristine Melton and it should remain that way,” said Andreas Gardiner, Assistant State Attorney.

• READ MORE: Convicted double-murderer Wade Wilson sentenced to death

For years, family anxiously waited in the wings of the courtroom at each step of Wilson’s trial, inching towards an answer: How will this man pay for killing their loved ones?

Now, they have it.

“This defendant is now nothing more than a number in the Florida Department of Corrections awaiting death,” said State Attorney Amira Fox.

Kristine Melton and Diane Ruiz now live only in memory; memories loved ones vow they will not let their killer forget.

“This will not be the last Wade Wilson sees of us in a courtroom,” said Samantha.

The family’s presence will serve as a reminder of the lives Wilson selfishly took until he loses his own.

“This is not the end. The end is when the accused takes his last breath and I will be there at the execution, and that’s a promise,” said Felix.