TAMPA, Fla. – Oba Chandler, a Florida man convicted on three murder charges, maintained his innocence until his execution. He was found guilty of the June 1989 killings of Joan Rogers and her two daughters, Michelle and Christie. The victims were found in Tampa Bay, tied to concrete blocks with yellow polypropylene rope around their necks. The case went unsolved for three years until police identified a suspect through handwriting left behind at the scene.

Rogers and her daughters were discovered with their mouths taped shut and nude from the waist down. Their autopsies revealed death by asphyxiation, but it was uncertain whether they had been drowned or strangled with the ropes. Their bodies had been underwater for 50 to 60 hours, making it impossible to determine if they had been raped.

Detectives eventually identified Oba Chandler as a suspect, linking his handwriting to a set of clues found in Rogers’ abandoned car. Later, a Canadian tourist reported being raped by a man matching the same description as Chandler, casting further suspicion on him.

Chandler was eventually arrested and charged with the rape of the Canadian tourist. His phone records also placed him on the water on the night of the murders, leading to murder charges being brought against him. Despite this, he maintained his innocence until his execution in November 2011 at 65 years old.

In 2014, Chandler was linked to another unsolved murder through DNA evidence, further solidifying his criminal history. The discovery brought closure to the family of his fourth victim, adding a bittersweet end to the tragic saga.