Alabama executes man for killing of three fast food restaurant workers in 1994

Alabama prison authorities have confirmed the execution of a 46-year-old man who was convicted and placed on death row for the killing three people at a fast-food restaurant during a 1994 robbery in Alabama.

Robert Melson was administered lethal injection and pronounced dead at 10.27 p.m. CDT (Central Daylight Time) on Thursday at a southwest Alabama prison.

Melson's execution was the state's second of the year.

State prosecutors had earlier said during the trial that Melson and another man who used to work at the restaurant, robbed a Popeye's in Gadsden, 96 kilometers northeast of Birmingham.

Melson, they claimed, opened fire on four employees in the restaurant's freezer.

Nathaniel Baker, Tamika Collins and Darrell Collier were killed.

The surviving employee, Bryant Archer, crawled out for help and was able to identify one of the robbers as the former worker, which eventually led police to arrest Melson for the crime.