A former prison guard trainee who executed five women inside a Florida bank almost six years ago was sentenced to death on Monday as his judge called the slayings calculated, heinous and cruel.
Zephen Xaver, 27, appeared to gulp but otherwise showed no emotion as Circuit Judge Angela Cowden pronounced the sentence at the Highlands County Courthouse in Sebring. After a two-week penalty trial, a jury in June voted 9-3 to recommend that Cowden sentence Xaver to death.
Cowden said the weeks of planning that Xaver performed before the 2019 murders at Sebring's SunTrust bank, the enormity of the crime and the fear the victims felt as they were shot greatly outweighed the two dozen mitigating factors his attorneys had presented, including his history of mental illness, his benign brain tumor and his jailhouse embrace of Christianity.
“May God have mercy on your soul,” Cowden told Xaver.
Xaver pleaded guilty last year to five counts of first-degree murder for the slayings of customer Cynthia Watson, 65; bank teller coordinator Marisol Lopez, 55; banker trainee Ana Pinon-Williams, 38; teller Debra Cook, 54; and banker Jessica Montague, 31.
At gunpoint, Xaver ordered the women to lie on the floor and then shot each the head as they begged for mercy.
Kiara Lopez told Xaver and the court that her mother Marisol had welcomed him into the bank with a smile, an act he repaid by murdering her.
“You shattered me into a million pieces," Lopez said. “I will celebrate the day you die, whenever that might be. Let it be known that you will always be a killer, a coward, a nobody and a waste of human life.”
Michael Cook, Debra's husband, also called Xaver a coward and told the judge, “I have absolutely no sympathy for him.”
Xaver’s lead public defender, Jane McNeill, had asked that Cowden spare her client, saying a life sentence would put an end to the case instead of dragging it out for a decade of appeals and possibly a retrial if the sentence is overturned.
“The only way for this matter to be brought to an end so that the families of the victims and this community is able to move forward is a life sentence,” McNeill argued. The sentence will be automatically appealed.
Under a new Florida law, death penalty sentences can be rendered by a jury vote of 8-4 rather than a unanimous recommendation. The change was adopted after the 2018 Parkland high school shooter could not be sentenced to death for murdering 17 people despite a 9-3 jury vote. McNeill called the new law unconstitutional.
Xaver moved to Sebring, a city of about 11,000, in 2018 from near South Bend, Indiana. In 2014, his high school principal contacted police after Xaver told others he was having dreams about hurting his classmates. His mother promised to get him psychological help.
He joined the Army in 2016. A former girlfriend, who met him at a mental hospital where they were patients, told police he said joining the military was a “way to kill people and get away with it.” The Army discharged him after three months. In 2017, a Michigan woman reported him after he sent her text messages suggesting he might commit “suicide by cop” or take hostages.
Despite his psychological problems and dismissal from the Army, Florida hired Xaver as a guard trainee in November 2018 at a prison near Sebring. He quit two months later, two weeks before the shootings and the day after he bought his gun.
Hours before the murders, Xaver began a long, intermittent text message conversation with a former girlfriend in Connecticut, telling her “this is the best day of my life” but refusing to say why. Fifteen minutes before the shootings, he texted her, “I’m dying today,”
Then, from the bank parking lot he texted, “I’m taking a few people with me because I’ve always wanted to kill people so I am going to try it and see how it goes. Watch for me on the news.”
FILE - A Highlands County Sheriff's SWAT vehicle is stationed out in front of a SunTrust Bank branch, Jan. 23, 2019, in Sebring, Fla., where authorities say five people were shot and killed. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara, File)
FILE - This Jan. 23, 2019, file, booking photo released by the Highlands County Sheriff's Office shows Zephen Xaver. (Highlands County Sheriff's Office via AP, File)
CINCINNATI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec 16, 2024--
Throughout the month of November, Fifth Third (NASDAQ: FITB) showed appreciation to small businesses across its 11-state footprint through a unique social media competition and tipping campaign, with employees celebrating their favorite local small businesses on social media for the opportunity to win one of five $5,300 grants.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241216355346/en/
Fifth Third employees across the country participated in the campaign, entering more than 2,800 local small businesses nationally for recognition through social media posts using the hashtag #Love53.
Of the 2,800 small businesses entered in the sweepstakes, five small businesses were randomly selected to receive $5,300 grants to help their companies continue to grow.
In addition to the sweepstakes, Fifth Third employees left more than 1,000 $53 tips – amounting to more than $53,000 – at their favorite small businesses throughout the week leading up to Small Business Saturday as a random act of kindness.
“At Fifth Third, we know that small, local businesses form the foundation of our communities – where we live, work, and play. And when they succeed, we succeed,” said Melissa Stevens, chief marketing officer for Fifth Third. “Our employees were excited to show our local small businesses some extra love this holiday season through our second annual ‘Swap, Snap, Share’ small business appreciation campaign, and we can’t wait to see how these grants help the winning businesses continue to grow.”
The winning businesses are:
The companies were surprised with the news late last week by the Fifth Third employees who nominated them. Videos of the surprises are available on Fifth Third’s LinkedIn page.
In Cincinnati, Fifth Third Compliance Officer Alex Yurchak nominated his favorite local small business: the fast-growing The Empanada’s Box, which offers empanadas in more than 16 unique international flavors that fuse the Nunez family’s Argentinian roots with other cultures and their flavors.
“I am in shock. I had no idea we were nominated for this amazing gift,” said Diego Nunez, who owns The Empanada's Box with his wife Fabiana Nunez. “Thank you, Fifth Third Bank. This grant will allow us to expand our marketing campaign to support each of our Price Hill, Covington, and Findlay Market locations.”
The ‘Swap, Snap, Share’ campaign was one more way that Fifth Third proudly supports small businesses across its footprint. The Bank also serves more than 320,000 small business clients in communities across the U.S. Supporting small businesses through lending, investments and technical assistance is a significant part of the Bank’s commitment to community and economic development.
Additionally, Fifth Third is committed to helping nurture, grow and strengthen small businesses through initiatives such as its Neighborhood Investment Program, which creates and implements innovative place-based strategies to effect positive change in nine historically disinvested neighborhoods across the Bank’s 11-state footprint, and a new Small Business Catalyst Fund launched in October.
About Fifth Third
Fifth Third is a bank that’s as long on innovation as it is on history. Since 1858, we’ve been helping individuals, families, businesses and communities grow through smart financial services that improve lives. Our list of firsts is extensive, and it’s one that continues to expand as we explore the intersection of tech-driven innovation, dedicated people and focused community impact. Fifth Third is one of the few U.S.-based banks to have been named among Ethisphere’s World’s Most Ethical Companies ® for several years. With a commitment to taking care of our customers, employees, communities and shareholders, our goal is not only to be the nation’s highest performing regional bank, but to be the bank people most value and trust.
Fifth Third Bank, National Association is a federally chartered institution. Fifth Third Bancorp is the indirect parent company of Fifth Third Bank and its common stock is traded on the NASDAQ ® Global Select Market under the symbol "FITB." Investor information and press releases can be viewed at www.53.com. Deposit and credit products provided by Fifth Third Bank, National Association. Member FDIC.
The Empanada’s Box in Cincinnati, Oh. was one of five small businesses randomly selected to receive a $5,300 grant from Fifth Third as part of a holiday small business appreciation campaign. (Photo: Business Wire)
The Empanada’s Box in Cincinnati, Oh. was one of five small businesses randomly selected to receive a $5,300 grant from Fifth Third as part of a holiday small business appreciation campaign. (Photo: Business Wire)
