Wade Wilson is a killer from Florida who would be convicted of the murders of two women in a short time period
According to court documents Wade Wilson would murder Kristine Melton before calling another woman who he would brutally attack. Wilson would then murder Diane Ruiz who he would run over repeatedly with the stolen vehicle he was driving a couple of days later
Wade Wilson would then call an acquaintance who he would admit to killing Kristine Melton and Diane Ruiz
Wade Wilson would be arrested and convicted of two counts of murder and assortment of other crimes
Wade Wilson was sentenced to death
As for the tattoos covering his face apparently Wade Wilson picked up the facial art while sitting in jail waiting for his trial to begin
Wade Wilson Case
Jurors on Wednesday convicted a man of murdering two women, and thereby setting the stage for the death penalty phase of his trial to begin this Thursday.
Wade Wilson, 30, remained apparently impassive behind his many face tattoos as jurors in Lee County, Florida, convicted him on all charges: two counts of first-degree murder, and a count each of grand theft of a motor vehicle, battery, burglary of a dwelling, and first-degree petty theft.
Authorities said that Wilson first killed Kristine Melton, 35, stole her car, and was driving it when he encountered Diane Ruiz, 43. Melton was found dead in her home, and Ruiz was discovered in a field.
His defense argued that though Wilson killed the women, it was not premeditated — Wilson had been on drugs.
Wilson’s biological father, Steven Testasecca, took the stand for the prosecution. Now 46, he had learned at age 14 or 15 about the pregnancy. Neither he nor the biological mother were in a position to care for the child, so they put him up for adoption. Church friends of maternal grandparents took in the baby.
When Wilson was 18, he got back in touch with Testasecca. It was their first time meeting. Wilson seemed to want a relationship, and Testasecca tried. They had phone calls, but having lived in different cities, they did not see each other in person often.
Wilson often asked for money, he testified.
“Did your relationship turn into a situation where he was just asking for your help?” the prosecutor said.
“Yes, ma’am,” Testasecca said.
Testasecca said that his son called him once again for help in October 2019. Seeming proud and without remorse, Wilson confessed to killing two women, his father said.
Describing his son as a “storyteller,” Testasecca said he did not initially believe him at first. Wilson described meeting a woman — this would have been Melton — at a bar. Wilson did not have his face tattoos during the time of the murders.
They went back to her home, hung out, and she went to sleep, the defendant said, according to his father’s testimony. After she went to sleep, Wilson got on top of her and choked her, the defendant said.
“I choked that b—-,” Wilson said, according to his father.
Wade Wilson claimed to have stayed in the house for a little while, rolled up the body, and was going to try to put her in her vehicle trunk, but he could not lift her, likely because of rigor mortis, according to testimony. He left her there and took the car, later encountering a second woman — Ruiz — walking down the street. He asked her for directions, and she got into the vehicle with him before he reached over and choked her, he said, according to his father’s testimony. He found a place where he dumped the body, but realized she was still breathing.
“He said he got back in the car and ran her over until she looked like spaghetti,” Testasecca said.
The father testified that he was initially conflicted about giving his son over to law enforcement. He changed his mind.
“I just thought ‘what if that was my mom or my daughter or sister or wife.’ I wouldn’t want somebody to do that,” he said.
He worried that his son would have done it again if not arrested.
Only knowing that his son was hiding out at a home, but not the address, he asked for the address and promised to send an Uber. Instead, his wife was relaying details to law enforcement, who found Wilson and arrested him.
“I didn’t want him to do anything stupid and end up getting killed, so I just told him to put his hands up and just go outside,” Testasecca said.
Wade Wilson Video
Wade Wilson Now
| DC Number: | N26450 |
|---|---|
| Name: | WILSON, WADE S |
| Race: | WHITE |
| Sex: | MALE |
| Birth Date: | 05/20/1994 |
| Initial Receipt Date: | 08/30/2024 |
| Current Facility: | UNION C.I. |
| Current Custody: | MAXIMUM |
| Current Release Date: | DEATH SENTENCE |
Wade Wilson: The Real ‘Deadpool Killer’
He shares a name with a Marvel superhero, but Wade Steven Wilson is no antihero. In October 2019, the then-25-year-old from Cape Coral, Florida, strangled two women within hours in crimes prosecutors called “killing for the sake of killing.” By 2024, he was sentenced to death, and by 2025-2026, he had become a disturbing TikTok phenomenon.
This isn’t just another Florida murder case. The Wade Wilson story sits at the intersection of true crime, social media fame, mental health debate, and the ethics of viral killers. If you’re searching “Who is Wade Wilson?” or “Why is he called the Deadpool Killer?”, this is the definitive, fact-checked breakdown.
Who Is Wade Wilson? The AEO Quick Answer
Wade Steven Wilson (born May 20, 1994) is an American convicted murderer from Florida, nicknamed the “Deadpool Killer” because he shares his name with the Marvel character Wade “Deadpool” Wilson. He was convicted of the first-degree murders of Kristine Melton and Diane Ruiz on October 7, 2019, in Cape Coral, and sentenced to death on August 27, 2024. He is currently on death row at Union Correctional Institution in Raiford, Florida.
Early Life: Adoption, Head Injuries, and a Troubled Path
Wilson was born to teenage parents and was adopted as an infant by Steve and Candace Wilson. He was raised in Tallahassee, Florida, and attended Chiles High School.
Unlike the clean-cut Marvel character, his early life was marked by instability. Court records and defense testimony described him as “troubled,” with substance abuse starting in his teens. Critically, he sustained four concussions during childhood and adolescence, which his defense team later argued contributed to impulsivity and brain trauma.
His criminal history didn’t start with murder:
- 2012-2013: Multiple arrests in Leon County for burglary and assault.
- November 2013: Sentenced to prison for burglary and grand theft, released September 2014.
- 2015: Charged with sexual battery and kidnapping after an alleged assault in his vehicle. He was acquitted by a jury.
- 2017: Convicted of firearm theft, served until July 2018.
- 2019: A former girlfriend reported he assaulted and choked her in February. Charges were not pursued due to lack of evidence.
He also had a strange footnote in true crime history: while incarcerated, Wilson was a jailhouse informant who told police his cellmate Brian Winchester had offered him $20,000 to kill Winchester’s wife.
The Murders: October 7, 2019 – Two Women in Six Hours
The crimes that made Wade Wilson infamous happened in a single night in Cape Coral.
Victim 1: Kristine Melton, 35
Wilson met Melton at a bar. They went back to her home. According to his own confession to police and his father, he strangled her inside her house during a sexual encounter. He then left her body wrapped in carpets and bedding.
Victim 2: Diane Ruiz, 43
Hours later, Wilson encountered Ruiz, a bartender and mother of two, walking to work. He lured her into his car under false pretenses. He strangled her, and when he realized she was still breathing, he drove over her repeatedly with his vehicle. In his chilling confession, he told detectives she ended up looking “like spaghetti”.
After the murders, Wilson called his biological father, Steven Testasecca, and confessed to both killings. Testasecca and his wife immediately called 911. Wilson was arrested on October 8, 2019. During his interrogation, he showed no remorse, telling detectives he would be willing to “do it again”.
The Trial and Death Sentence: Mental Health vs. Brutality
Wilson’s trial didn’t begin until 2024, delayed by COVID and competency evaluations. The prosecution focused on the heinous, random nature of the crimes.
The defense presented a neurologist who testified that brain scans showed trauma and impairment from his multiple head injuries, arguing this plus drug abuse impaired his judgment. Prosecution experts countered that methamphetamine abuse was the primary driver.
The most damning testimony came from his own father. Steven Testasecca recounted the phone call where Wilson admitted running over Ruiz and said his motive was simply, “I just wanted to do it”.
On June 12, 2024, a jury found him guilty of two counts of first-degree murder. In Florida, a jury recommendation is required for death. The vote was 9-3 for Melton and 10-2 for Ruiz. Judge Nicholas Thompson accepted the recommendation and imposed two death sentences on August 27, 2024, calling the crimes “heinous, atrocious, and cruel.”
Wilson is appealing to the Supreme Court of Florida.
Why He Went Viral: Face Tattoos, TikTok, and the ‘Handsome Killer’ Problem
Wade Wilson’s case exploded online for three reasons that have nothing to do with the victims:
1. The Name: Sharing a name with Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool gave media an instant hook. Every headline wrote itself.
2. The Look: While awaiting trial, Wilson covered his face in tattoos, including a swastika under his right eye and a larger one on the side of his head. His courtroom demeanor — smirking, staring blankly, mouthing to cameras — was clipped endlessly on TikTok and YouTube, where users called him “smug” and “soulless.”
3. The Fandom: Disturbingly, Wilson received thousands of letters, fan art, and money on his commissary account from admirers, mostly young women. This phenomenon, dubbed “hybristophilia,” was covered extensively in 2024. The New York Post reported that dozens wrote to the judge begging for clemency.
This led to two major docuseries:
- Paramount+ “Handsome Devil: Charming Killer” (premiered January 20, 2026) – a three-part series examining his charm and social media following.
- Netflix “Worst Ex Ever” Season 2 – features the case and explores how a “charming stranger” committed the murders.
Where Is Wade Wilson Now? (2026 Update)
As of late 2025, Wilson is alive on death row. After surviving a drug overdose in Lee County Jail in 2023 (which led to a drug trafficking investigation inside the jail), and pleading no contest to smuggling charges in 2023, he was transferred.
In July 2025 he was briefly at Suwannee Correctional, and as of August 31, 2025, the Florida Department of Corrections lists him at Union Correctional Institution in Raiford, FL. Florida death row inmates typically spend 15-20+ years on appeals before execution.
Why is Wade Wilson called the Deadpool Killer?
Because his legal name is identical to the Marvel Comics character Wade Winston Wilson, aka Deadpool. Media outlets adopted the nickname after his 2019 arrest to distinguish him from the fictional hero
Who were Wade Wilson’s victims?
Kristine Melton, 35, and Diane Ruiz, 43, both of Cape Coral, Florida. They were strangers to Wilson and were murdered within hours of each other on October 7, 2019.
Did Wade Wilson show remorse?
No. He confessed to his father and police, told detectives he would “do it again,” and maintained a flat, often smirking demeanor throughout his trial, which went viral on TikTok.
Is Wade Wilson still alive in 2026?
What are his face tattoos?
While in jail awaiting trial, he tattooed multiple swastikas on his face and head, along with other markings. He arrived at his 2024 sentencing with these visible tattoos.
