Florida Carries Out 13th Execution of the Year, Setting Record
This undated photo provided by the Florida Department of Corrections shows death row inmate Victor Tony Jones. (Florida Department of Corrections via AP)
A man convicted of murdering a South Florida couple during a 1990 robbery was executed Tuesday evening, marking Florida’s 13th execution of the year — the highest number in state history.
Victor Tony Jones, 64, was pronounced dead at 6:13 p.m. following a lethal injection at Florida State Prison near Starke. The execution surpassed the state’s previous annual record of eight executions in 2014. Officials have scheduled two additional executions for October.
The execution process began promptly at 6:00 p.m., according to the Associated Press. When asked if he had a final statement, Jones replied, “no, sir.” Moments later, the drugs were administered. Witnesses reported his breathing slowed before stopping completely.
Court records show Jones was a new hire at a Miami-Dade business owned by Matilda and Jacob Nestor in December 1990 when he attacked them, stabbing Mrs. Nestor in the neck and Mr. Nestor in the chest. Despite his injuries, Jacob Nestor managed to retreat to an office, retrieve a .22-caliber pistol, and fire five shots, striking Jones once in the forehead.
Police discovered Jones at the scene with gunshot wounds and the couple’s money and personal belongings in his possession. He was arrested, hospitalized, and later convicted in 1993 of two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of armed robbery.
Jones’ attorneys filed appeals this month, arguing intellectual disability and childhood abuse at a now-closed state reform school. The Florida Supreme Court denied the claims, ruling the disability issue had already been addressed and the abuse allegations were never raised during trial. On Tuesday, just hours before the execution, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a final appeal without comment.
Since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976, no state has executed more inmates in a single year than Florida in 2025. Texas has carried out the second-highest total this year, with five executions.
Governor Ron DeSantis has already signed warrants for two more executions in October. On October 14, 72-year-old Samuel Lee Smithers is scheduled to be put to death for the 1996 killings of two women whose bodies were discovered in a rural pond. On October 28, 65-year-old Norman Mearle Grim Jr. is set for execution after being convicted of raping and murdering his neighbor in 1998, her body later found near the Pensacola Bay Bridge.
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