August execution date set for Florida man involved in 1994 murder, rape in national forest – WSVN 7News | Miami News, Weather, Sports

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — A Florida man convicted of kidnapping adult siblings camping in a national forest in 1994, then raping his sister and killing his brother, will be executed next month.

Governor Ron DeSantis signed the death warrant for Loran Cole on Monday. Cole, 57, will be executed by lethal injection on August 28 at the Florida State Prison.

Cole and a friend, William Paul, befriended the two students while camping in the Ocala National Forest. After chatting around a fire, the men offered to take the siblings to a pond. While they were away from the campsite, Cole and Paul jumped the victims and robbed them, according to court records.

The brother, who was 18, was beaten and left in the woods. His sister, who was 21, was taken back to the campsite, where Cole tied her up and raped her. She eventually freed herself and flagged down a driver for help. Police found her brother’s body lying facedown on the ground with head injuries and a slit throat, according to court records.

Paul and Cole were convicted of first-degree murder. Paul was sentenced to life. Cole, who was also convicted of two counts of rape, was sentenced to death.

The execution would be the first in Florida since Michael Zack was sentenced to death last October for the 1996 murder of Ravonne Smith.