Roye was born on September 6, 1935. When he was eight years old, both of his parents passed away from unknown causes, so he and his sister were raised by their grandmother.

In high school, during his junior year, Roye started getting into trouble by committing small crimes. This behavior eventually led to him being sent to a state reformatory in November 1951. While he was there, Roye developed an interest in baseball. After he was released, he joined his school’s baseball team and even dreamed of playing in the major leagues someday.

During this period, Roye also admitted to committing purse snatches and thefts from parked trucks in New York City.

On January 2, 1954, Roye was walking through an apartment complex in Harlem when he started following Margaret Branch, who was 40 years old and walking home alone. He waited until she was near her room, then attacked her. He choked and robbed her, carried her to the fifth floor, and raped her. Afterward, he strangled her with one of her Christmas stockings. 

Four months later, on May 28, Roye was in a subway station when he began following 25-year-old Kathleen Stewart. He followed her all the way to her apartment by the Harlem River. Once there, he threatened her, pretending he had a knife. He forced her into the parking lot, raped her twice, tied her hands behind her back, and strangled her to death.

On June 7, 1954, Roye attacked 66-year-old Isadora Goomes as she entered her apartment building. He put a noose around her neck and demanded money. Goomes gave him five pennies, but Roye tightened the noose until she died. With the five pennies, he bought a box of crackers. He then ate the crackers while watching the police examine Goomes' body. Detectives noticed him watching and arrested him.

At his trial, Roye confessed to all the murders, explaining in detail how he committed them. He said he didn't mean to kill Goomes but claimed that when he tightened the noose, she "just died on me."

Two days before Roye's arrest, another man named John Francis Roche was arrested for driving erratically. He confessed to six murders in Manhattan's Yorkville neighborhood. The media compared Roye's and Roche's cases because they happened close to each other. In a jail interview with his sister, Roye denied confessing, saying, "they found my pants in the hallway." He was not eligible for bail while awaiting trial. On February 4, 1955, Roye was convicted of first-degree murder in Goomes' death. The jury didn't recommend mercy, so he was sentenced to death on March 5, 1955.

While waiting for his execution, Roye didn't receive any visitors but turned to religion. After 10 months on death row, on January 19, 1956, Roye was executed by electric chair at Sing Sing Prison. His last meal was roast chicken and steak, and he had no last words.