The Horrific Crimes of Gary Simmons: A Tale of Murder, Dismemberment, and Rape

On August 11, 1996, 21-year-old Jeffery Wolfe and Charlene Brooke Leaser made a trip from Houston, Texas, to Jackson County, Mississippi, with the intention of collecting money from some friends, Gary Carl Simmons Jr and Timothy Milano, who owed them a debt from a drug-related business deal. Their trip to Mississippi however turned bloody.

Inside The Story

Jeffery Wolfe and his girlfriend, Leaser had driven from Houston, Texas to Mississippi to collect a drug debt of between $12,000 to $20,000 owed by 33-year-old Simmons and his former brother in-law, Timothy Milano who was 21 at the time.

Upon arriving at Simmons' house, they were told that the drugs and money were unavailable, and an argument ensued. During the altercation, Milano fatally shot Wolfe with a .22-caliber rifle. Simmons then hog-tied and imprisoned Wolfe's girlfriend in a foot locker, later removing her to rape her.

After incapacitating Leaser, Simmons tied her up and locked her in the box. While Leaser was trapped in the box, Simmons and Milano proceeded with their plan to dispose of Wolfe's body. Simmons began dismembering Wolfe's body in the bathtub, with Milano's assistance, and then distributed the remains into the bayou running behind Simmons's property using a boat borrowed from a neighbor just hours before.

Leaser eventually woke up to the sound of a ringing telephone. When no one answered, she believed that the house was empty. She summoned her strength and began banging on the top of the box. The lid came off, and Leaser managed to escape from the house. She grabbed her clothes and fled to a neighbor's house to call the police.

Upon arriving at the scene, the police first noticed blood on a boat that Simmons had borrowed from a neighbor. They continued their search and discovered a head, fingers, arms, organs, and a torso containing bullet casings floating nearby.

It seems that the body parts were carelessly disposed of and just dumped, with Simmons believing that alligators in the area would eventually consume them. About 80% of his body were recovered.

Trial and Sentencing

Gary Simmons worked as a butcher in a grocery store.

At trial, Simmons's co-worker in the meat department of the grocer where they both worked testified that Simmons had taken his butcher's knives home with him on the evening of the murder, which he found unusual.

The case was ultimately solved thanks to the testimony of Charlene Leaser.

Simmons' trial commenced on August 25, 1997, and four days later, the jury returned a guilty verdict on all three counts of the indictment. For the charges of kidnapping and rape, Simmons was sentenced to separate life sentences.

A separate sentencing hearing was held for the capital murder conviction, and the jury unanimously determined that Simmons should face the death penalty on August 29, 1997.

Milano was sentenced to life in prison for his involvement in the crime.

Execution By Lethal Injection

Gary Simmons was executed on June 20, 2012. His bizarre last meal request brought attention to him after his death.

His last meal may be the largest request a dḛậth row inmate had ever made.

His Last Meal Request:

One Pizza Hut medium Super Supreme Deep Dish pizza, double portion, with mushrooms, onions, jalapeno peppers, and pepperoni; pizza, regular portion, with three cheeses, olives, bell pepper, tomato, garlic and Italian sausage; 10 8-oz. packs of Parmesan cheese; 10 8-oz. packs of ranch dressing; one family size bag of Doritos nacho cheese flavor; 8 oz. jalapeno nacho cheese; 4 oz. sliced jalapenos; 2 large strawberry shakes; two 20-oz. cherry Cokes; one super-size order of McDonald's fries with extra ketchup and mayonnaise; and two pints of strawberry ice cream. (A 28,974 calorie-busting feast).

The calorie content was calculated to be approximately 29,000 calories. Before he was executed, Simmons had eaten almost half of his meal and had tried a bit of everything he ordered.