A newlywed couple thought they had their whole lives ahead of them.
But a vacation turned into the worst moment of their lives.
And a Florida fishing trip turned into a nightmare for newlyweds after this awful situation.
Newlyweds murdered after they were lured with a fishing trip
Newlyweds Greg and Kimberly Malnory left to go on a fishing trip in Charlotte County, Florida, at the South Florida Sod Farm, which was also a fish farm, in the spring of 1997. The trip was set-up by Greg’s co-worker James Dennis Ford.
The couple took along their 22-month-old daughter Maranda.
Law enforcement found their bodies near their truck in the middle of the 7,000-acre farm.
Maranda was strapped into her car seat in the truck and survived the horrifying ordeal.
Connie Ankney, Greg’s mother, remembered getting called into the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office.
“I walked in there and Kimberly’s mother and stepdad were there… sobbing,” Ankney recalled. “She told me that they were dead, and I just couldn’t believe it…said they’re dead but the baby’s alive.”
Ankney initially believed they were in a boating accident because she thought the couple went fishing.
“They didn’t say murder right away…and when they did…I just lost it,” Ankney said. “It doesn’t hit you right away…it’s just so unbelievable. Murders didn’t happen in Charlotte County… it was a small little town and everybody knew everybody.”
Police believe that Kimberly strapped Maranda in the car seat and tried to get away after Greg had been murdered.
“The fear that Kimberly must have felt trying to get Miranda in that car seat and trying to get into that truck… she never drove a stick in her life,” Ankney said. “Just trying to get the hell out of there and fighting him.”
Maranda was estimated to have been in the truck for 18 hours until the authorities found her.
DNA found at the crime scene connected Ford to the case.
“I spent some time with him in a pickup truck going through the property, having him recount what their activities were that day,” Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office Major James Kenville said. “He was very cool, he was believable when you talked to him, but the physical evidence was telling us that wasn’t the case”.
Ron DeSantis signs the death warrant of a killer who slaughtered newlywed couple
Ford was sentenced to death in 1999 after he was convicted on two counts of first-degree murder, child abuse, and sexual battery with a firearm.
He finally exhausted his appeals this year and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed his death warrant in January.
Ford was executed at the Florida State Prison via lethal injection on February 13.
Ankney traveled to the prison to attend the execution of her son’s murderer.
“Never give up. Always fight for your children,” Ankney said. “I never quit fighting for my son and Kimberly. I didn’t know if I would be alive today to see this because Kimberly’s mother isn’t.”
“They always talk about… closure,” Ankeny continued. “Well, no, it’s justice. Just justice.”
She wanted to thank DeSantis for signing the death warrant.
“I just want to give him a big hug and…tell him thank you, thank you,” Ankney said about DeSantis.
“They can finally rest in peace. This has been something that’s been going on for 27 years, and now they can have peace,” Ankeny stated. “The heartache is still going to be there, but he’s done. I have no mercy for him… it’s totally in God’s hands.”
DeSantis Daily will keep you up-to-date on any new developments in this story.
