RP executes convicted killer

RP executes convicted killer

MANILA (AFP): The Philippines executed convicted rapist-killer Pablito Andan by lethal injection on Tuesday after President Joseph Estrada rejected last-minute appeals for a reprieve.

Andan, wearing an orange prison uniform, was declared dead by prison doctors at 3:07 p.m. (2:07 p.m. Jakarta time).

The 24-year-old welder was convicted of raping student nurse Marianne Guevarra, 20, in 1994. He killed the victim by bashing her head with a cinder block after the rape.

A witness to the execution said Andan's final words were: "I love them, I love them," apparently referring to his three young children.

Andan is the sixth convict to be executed in the Philippines this year after a 23-year ban on executions was broken when convicted rapist Leo Echegaray was put to death by lethal injection on Feb. 5.