Frank FernandezThe Daytona Beach News-Journal
Louis Gaskin, the so-called "Ninja killer" who is scheduled to be executed next month, gave an account to investigators of how he stalked and killed a couple one night in Palm Coast 34 years ago.
Gaskin murdered Robert and Georgette Sturmfels inside their home at 10 Ripley Place on Dec. 20, 1989. At the time, it was the only house on the cul-de-sac; it was isolated and surrounded by woods on most sides.
Gaskin, who dressed like a ninja, was armed with a .22-caliber rifle as he walked around the Sturmfels' home several times that night. He shot the couple through a window. Then he broke into the house and continued the terror.
Death warrant signed:Execution date set for Flagler's 'Ninja killer' for 1989 double-slaying
Attorney: Execution drug violates Gaskin's constitutional right against cruel punishment
The 'Ninja Killer' case:What's next now that DeSantis has signed death warrant for Flagler's 'ninja killer'
'Oh, my God, what's happening?'
A document titled "Facts of the crime and procedural history," filed Tuesday in Flagler County Circuit Court, contained a statement Gaskin gave investigators about the killings. Here, in his own words, is Gaskin's chilling account of the murders:
"Aimed, aimed at him, pulled the trigger and he was shot. To his wife it appeared that he was having a heart attack and then he said, 'Oh, my God, what’s happening' and I shot him again and his wife realized what was going on.
"She proceeded to run. I shot her.
"He was still standing and he tried to run and I shot him again. He fell down. Didn’t move anymore.
"It was like his wife got a little burst of energy from somewhere; proceeded to crawl out and shother again.
"She still proceeded. She got into the hallway out of sight, so I went around to the other doors that faced the hallway. She was sitting there holding her head looking at the blood. I shot her again. She fell over.
"I went back around to the front; pulled the screen out; bust the window; opened it up; proceeded in and closed the window back, closed the blinds; checked them out and shot him again in the head at point-blank range.
"Went around to the lady. She was still groggily dying; shot her again in the head at point-blank range and then closed the blinds in the rest of the house."
Gov. Ron DeSantis Monday signed a death warrant for the 56-year-old Gaskin, who is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on April 12. Defense lawyers are in the midst of a legal battle to try and save Gaskin's life.
Gaskin attacks another couple
Gaskin took some items from the house, including aclock, a pair of lamps, and a videocassette recorder. As he tried to find his way back to Royal Palms Parkway, he wound up on Ricker Place and noticed another house.
This time Gaskincouldn’t get a clear shot from outside, so he tried to lure the residents from the house. He cut the telephone cord and threw rocks and wood on the roof.
Joe and Nadeen Rector heard the noise and tried to call police, but the line was dead. When they walked into the master bedroom to tryanother phone, Gaskin shot at them. He hit Joe Rector.
The couple managed to get outside to their car. As they drove away, Gaskin fired five more times at them, hitting the car. Doctors were able to save Joe Rector.
'Both people he killed, he killed execution-style'
John Tanner was the State Attorney for the 7th Circuit at the time of the murders and also the prosecuting attorney on the case.
“If anyone ever deserves the death penalty, he certainly did,” Tanner said in a phone interview Thursday. “He tried to kill four senior citizens. He succeeded in killing two and wounding a third.”
When asked about Gaskin's "ninja" outfit, Tanner said it was black clothing and perhaps a hood.
Tanner said that Gaskin told a person to read about the killingsin the papers.
“These were just random crimes of violence; petty theft and he’s bragging about it,” Tanner said. “He pursued one lady down the hall as she’s crawling, shooting her. Both people he killed, he killed execution-style.”
Judge sets schedule prior to Gaskin's execution
Circuit Judge Terence Perkins presided on Thursday over a case-management conference that most people, including Gaskin, attended via Zoom. The state Supreme Court set the schedule for the legal battle now underway.
Based on that schedule, Perkins said all of the trialcourt proceedings and orders must be completed by March 22 at 3 p.m. and the record must be filed by 3 p.m. March 24.
The next hearing will address Gaskin’s defense team’s request for records from the state and agencies, including the Department of Corrections. Perkins set a hearing for 10 a.m. Friday over objections to those requests.
