Triple Murderer Ate Final Meal, Including Egg Rolls and Chocolate Cake, Before Being Executed by Firing Squad By Toria Sheffield

South Carolina triple murderer Stephen Bryant ate his final meal before being executed by firing squad.

Bryant, 44, was pronounced dead at the Broad River Correctional Institution in Columbia, S.C., on Friday, Nov. 14, at 6:05 p.m. local time, per the Associated Press. He had chosen execution by firing squad over lethal injection or electrocution, all three of which are legal in the state. 

For his final meal, Bryant opted for mixed seafood stir fry, fried fish over rice, egg rolls, stuffed shrimp, two candy bars and German chocolate cake, per AP. 

The execution was carried out by three prison employees. There were 10 witnesses present, including several family members of the victims, according to the outlet. Bryant made no final statement.

Bryant was convicted of fatally shooting three people during a week-long burglary and killing spree in the fall of 2004 in rural Sumter County. He was 23 at the time, according to the South Carolina Daily Gazette.

Bryant first killed his 36-year-old coworker, Clifton Gainey, on Oct. 9 of that year and then burglarized his home. Two days later, he killed 62-year-old Willard Tietjen in his home, per the Daily Gazette.

Bryant left notes written in blood on the wall of Tietjen’s home, one of which read: “Victim number four in two weeks, catch me if you can,” per The Post and Courier. He also taunted the victim’s wife and daughter when he answered Tietjen’s phone, saying the man was “dead.”

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Two days later, Bryant killed 35-year-old Chris Burgess after meeting him at a convenience store, the Daily Gazette reported.

Bryant pleaded guilty to the crimes in 2008. At the time, his lawyers argued that he tried to seek out mental health counseling prior to the murders because he kept reliving sexual abuse he claimed occurred when he was a child, The Post and Courier reported, citing court records.

Bryant is the third person to be executed by firing squad — and the seventh overall — in South Carolina this year, per the Daily Gazette. 

Bryant’s attorney, Bo King, stated that his client’s final wish was that no one be rejected from accessing mental health support simply because they cannot afford to pay, as Bryant claimed he was.

“That is consistent with the man we knew, who showed grace and courage in forgiving his family and great love for those in and outside of his prison,” King said in the statement, per the Daily Gazette. “We will remember his unlikely friendships, his fierce protectiveness, and his love for nature, the water, and the world. We will miss him.”