Daniel Eugene Remeta was born on January 6, 1958, in Traverse City, Michigan. He was of Native American descent and grew up in a home filled with dysfunction and violence. His parents were both alcoholics, and his father was physically abusive toward his wife and children. Daniel’s extended family offered little refuge; his uncles were similarly violent and encouraged Daniel and his brother to fight each other, sometimes using weapons. At around 10 or 11 years old, Daniel’s parents divorced, marking yet another disruption in an already unstable childhood.

As a child, Remeta showed early signs of violent and reckless behavior. At the age of five, he reportedly pointed a wooden toy gun at a police officer and struck him. Throughout his teenage years, he was arrested numerous times, eventually racking up 14 juvenile convictions. By 21, he found himself incarcerated at Marquette Branch Prison in Michigan for larceny.

Daniel Remeta’s violent spree began in early February 1985, only months after being released from prison. Over the span of six days, he left a trail of bodies across Florida, Arkansas, and Kansas. His actions were not only cold-blooded but seemingly impulsive, driven by robbery and the thrill of dominance over others.

On February 8, 1985, in Ocala, Florida, Remeta entered a convenience store with two teenage accomplices: Lisa Dunn and Mark Anthony Walter. Remeta approached the register pretending to make a small purchase. As 60-year-old clerk Mehrle “Chet” Reeder opened the till, Remeta pulled out a .357 Magnum and shot him. After Reeder fell, Remeta delivered multiple follow-up shots before stealing $52 from the register. Reeder died at the scene.

On February 10, 1985, the group was in Waskom, Texas. There, they kidnapped and shot 18-year-old cashier Camellia Carroll five times. Miraculously, Carroll survived and would later testify against Remeta. The next day, February 11, they robbed another convenience store in Mulberry, Arkansas. During the robbery, 42-year-old clerk Linda Marvin was shot 11 times and killed. The group escaped with $556 in cash.

By February 13, 1985, Remeta’s group had picked up a hitchhiker named James Hunter, who would later become entangled in the crimes. That day, they killed Larry McFarland, a 27-year-old gas station manager in Grainfield, Kansas. Soon after, they shot Sheriff Ben Albright twice when he tried to pull them over. Albright survived.

The group fled to a nearby grain elevator, where they kidnapped two men—John Schroeder (29) and Glenn Moore (55). They drove the men to a dirt road in Colby, Kansas, forced them to lie on the ground, and executed them both with shots to the back of the head using the same .357 Magnum.

Soon after, the Kansas police cornered the group in Atwood. During a shootout, Mark Anthony Walter was killed by police gunfire. Remeta and Dunn were wounded and taken into custody. Hunter was arrested without injuries. Investigators later tied Remeta to additional robberies in several other states.

Remeta faced multiple trials in Kansas, Florida, and Arkansas. In Kansas, he pled guilty to the murders of Schroeder and Moore, receiving four life sentences. He later pled guilty to the murder of Larry McFarland in exchange for Lisa Dunn avoiding charges in that specific killing. He was given a fifth life sentence, all to be served consecutively.

In Florida, he was convicted in June 1986 for killing Mehrle Reeder. The jury unanimously recommended the death penalty, and Judge Carvel Angel sentenced him to die by electric chair.

In Arkansas, Remeta was tried and convicted for the murder of Linda Marvin. Again, the jury recommended execution. This marked his second death sentence.

Despite Kansas authorities wishing to keep Remeta in their custody to serve his life terms, Florida law prohibited returning death row inmates to other states. The governors of Kansas and Florida debated this in the public eye, and Kansas eventually agreed to let Florida carry out its capital punishment.

James Hunter and Lisa Dunn were initially convicted of aiding the murders and given life sentences. However, both appealed. Hunter was acquitted in a retrial in 1988 after the jury found he acted under duress. Four days later, he died of a heart attack at age 36. Lisa Dunn was acquitted in 1992 and later extradited to Arkansas in 1993, where she took a plea deal and was released shortly after, having already served significant time.

Remeta fought his death sentences through multiple appeals, but all were denied. After a failed appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, his execution was scheduled for March 31, 1998. At 40 years old, he was executed by electric chair at Florida State Prison.