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Crime

Death warrant signed for former Sweetwater cop

 

By DAVID OVALLE

dovalle@MiamiHerald.com

Manuel Pardo, the former Sweetwater cop who killed nine people, claiming they were “scum of the earth,” will be executed Dec. 11, the governor’s office said Tuesday.

Prosecutors said Pardo, 56, and cohort Rolando Garcia committed nine murders during the 1980s, ripping off drug dealers and people who could implicate them in the crimes.

“I’m not a criminal. I’m a soldier. As a soldier, I ask to be given the death penalty,” he told the court when he was sentenced to death in 1988. “I accomplished my mission, and I hope you will give me the glory to at least end my days in a proper fashion.”

At trial, lawyers for Pardo — a former highway patrolman, Boy Scout leader and decorated Navy veteran — argued he was insane at the time of the crimes and thought he was ridding the streets of criminals.

Gov. Rick Scott signed his death warrant Tuesday.

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