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In the middle of the divorce war with his wife and the custody battle over their three children, Robert Fratta devised a deadly plan: the ex-cop searched for a hitman who was supposed to kill his wife, Farah. Finally, in November 1994, the plan worked. The indirectly hired hitman shot Farah Fratta twice in the head in front of her garage in a suburb of Houston.

Robert Fratta was executed on Wednesday night for his murder contract. In Texas, he received the lethal injection in the presence of a clergyman and died 24 minutes after the injection.

Shortly before the execution, Fratta's lawyers had lodged an objection to the execution and thus tried to prevent the use of the drug pentobarbital. However, an appeals court rejected the appeal.

According to prosecutors, the 65-year-old is said to have recruited an acquaintance, who hired a hitman to kill the then 33-year-old Farah Fratta. According to the court documents, the couple wanted to divorce at the time.

The ex-cop is said to have urged several friends and acquaintances to kill his wife or "recommend someone who could kill her," court documents said. Fratta eventually hired an acquaintance from his gym to find a hitman. According to US media reports, Fratta paid the perpetrator $1,000 for the murder.

For this, he was sentenced to death for the first time in 1996, but the guilty verdict was overturned in 2007 due to a formal error. In a second trial in 2009, he was again sentenced to death. Fratta's accomplices were also sentenced to death after the fact: middleman Joseph Prystash is said to have organized the later shooter Howard Guidry.

"Be kind to Bobby."

According to eyewitnesses, just before the execution at Huntsville State Penitentiary began, Fratta was asked by a prison guard if he had any last words. His answer: "No."

Finally, the execution began. His advisor Barry Brown meanwhile prayed for the dying man, asking God: "Have mercy on Bobby." According to eyewitnesses, his hand rested on Fratta's right hand.

After the lethal injection, Fratta closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and snored loudly six times. After that, he didn't move anymore. He was officially pronounced dead on Tuesday evening at 7:49 p.m.

Fratta's execution is the second in the United States this year. A week ago, a trans person was executed for the first time. Amber McLaughlin, convicted of murder, was sentenced to death on Tuesday in Missouri.