A former Florida police officer has been sentenced to death after being found guilty of burning his romantic rival alive.
Otto Lenke, 67, was found guilty of shooting Richard Benson, 57, three times, before setting him alight on February 17, 2021.
Lenke was sentenced to death on Wednesday, October 14, at the St. Lucie County Courthouse in Florida.
Circuit Court Judge Michael Linn wrote in his sentencing order that Lenke ‘executed a cold and calculated plan’ to murder Benson ‘in one of the most heinous, atrocious, and cruel ways imaginable.’
The order stated that Lenke drove 40 minutes to a motorcycle repair shop that Benson owned in Fort Pierce, waiting there for 20 minutes before shooting Benson in the back.
He then poured two containers of denatured alcohol over Benson and set him on fire while he was still alive.
Prosecutors alleged Lenke killed Benson because he was dating Lisa Diggs, a woman Lenke had previously been in a relationship with.
The former Melbourne police officer and Indian River County firefighter was convicted of first-degree murder with a firearm and first-degree arson of a structure in May, with the jury recommending the death penalty in an 11-1 vote.
Delivering the execution order, Linn said: ‘The court’s independent evaluation of this case herein leads to the conclusion that the death sentence is appropriate and a just sentence for the murder of Richard Benson.
‘Therefore, Otto Lenke, I hereby sentence you to death for the first-degree murder of Richard Benson.’
Brandon White, Assistant State Attorney, said: ‘He did a horrific act, he’s going to pay the price. And up until the day that he dies, he’s going to be in solitary confinement. This is justice,’ as reported by CBS.
‘For years, this case has been pending, and today, the family of Richard Benson got justice. So, I’m very, very relieved for that.’
Justin Cormier, Assistant State Attorney, added: ‘We’re relieved. That’s what we were hoping for in this case and we’re glad that justice could be served.’
Lenke was identified in surveillance footage of the murder by Diggs, who recognised his black motorcycle helmet and ‘particular walk’.
Diggs told investigators that she had known Lenke for 10 years, befriending him after her husband died of cancer seven years prior.
On January 19, Lenke deliverd a handmade wooden boat to his former lover, at which point he asked ‘why she did not love him’ and asked if it was because she was seeing someone.
As he did so, it is alleged Benson called Diggs, which caused Lenke to become emotional, which prosecutors argued is what sparked Lenke’s plan to murder Benson.
Lenke used his daughter’s Pontiac Bonneville to make the trip to Benson’s store, while his mobile phone was left at home.
The phone was later tracked to a shoreline of the Indian River Lagoon near Sebastian, where police recovered a .40-caliber Glock firearm that was consistent with the murder weapon.
Surveillance footage showed Lenke removing the vehicle’s number plate before carrying out the attack.
Assistant State Attorney White, who prosecuted Lenke, praised the death sentence, describing Lenke’s crime as one of ‘the most heinous things’ he had ever seen.
‘I remember being in a room with the Indian River County Sheriff’s detectives, probably with over 100 years of combined experience, and their jaws dropped when they saw this video because it was probably one of the most heinous things we’ve ever seen,’ he told Treasure Coast News.
Though Lenke has been sentenced, his case still has to be reviewed by the Florida Supreme Court under state law.