S.C. Man, Who Was Convicted of Killing a Cop, Chose This Upscale Final Meal Before His Firing Squad Execution

• Mikal Mahdi chose an upscale final meal before he was executed by a firing squad on April 11
• He was previously convicted of two 2004 murders, including the death of an off-duty cop he shot and set on fire
• Mahdi is the second South Carolina man to have been killed by a firing squad within several months

A South Carolina man — who was convicted of two 2004 murders, including the death of an off-duty cop — opted for a lavish final meal before his execution.

Mikal Mahdi, 42, chose to be killed by a firing squad over a lethal injection or the electric chair, which his attorney, assistant federal public defender David Weiss, called the “lesser of three evils,” according to Associated Press, on Friday, April 11.

On the evening of Wednesday, April 9, he ate his last meal: a fine dining offer made up of a rib eye steak, mushroom risotto, broccoli and collard greens, with cheesecake for dessert and a sweet tea drink, according to a press release from the South Carolina Department of Corrections.

Mahdi gave no final statement in the moments leading up to his execution, which was carried out by correctional volunteers at the Broad River Correctional Institution in Columbia.

According to the AP, Mahdi cried out as the first bullets hit him, before flexing his arms and groaning. A doctor then declared him dead at 6:05 p.m. local time.

Mahdi’s execution was carried out in front of nine witnesses, including his attorney and a member of the deceased cop’s family, as well as representatives from the First Circuit Solicitor’s Office and the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office, which prosecuted and investigated his case, respectively.

His execution took place after his final appeal was rejected by the U.S. and South Carolina Supreme Court, the AP reported.

Mahdi’s lawyers argued that his original trial attorneys were not prepared to handle the death penalty trial and ignored the impact that months spent in prison solitary confinement had on him as a teenager after witnessing traumatic events in his childhood.

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Mahdi was convicted of a multi-state crime spree in July 2004, which began in Virginia and ended in Florida, according to court documents obtained by PEOPLE. 

On July 14, 2004, Mahdi stole a .380 caliber pistol, a set of Virginia license plates and a station wagon from his neighbor before heading for North Carolina.

When he arrived, he entered a gas station and placed a can of beer on the counter, but when the store clerk asked for identification, Mahdi fatally shot him, according to court documents summarizing the case.

Mahdi then took the beer and headed towards South Carolina where, at a traffic light, he stole a man’s car and replaced it with the plates he had previously stolen in Virginia.

Court documents said he then drove southeast, stopping at a gas station in Columbia, before fleeing on foot after a store clerk became suspicious of him.

Mahdi later ended up at a farm owned by Captain James Myers, a law enforcement officer, according to authorities.

He waited at the man’s house until he came home, and then shot him nine times with a .22 rifle. He also poured diesel fuel on Myers’ body and set him on fire, per the court documents.

Mahdi then fled to Florida, where he was spotted by police in Myers’ car. He was subsequently taken into custody. 

Mahdi’s execution came after Brad Sigmon was put to death in South Carolina on March 7, during what marked the first U.S. firing squad death in 15 years and the fourth since 1976.

The only other states to authorize death by a firing squad are Mississippi, Oklahoma and Utah.