STARKE, Fla. — A man convicted of fatally shooting two people outside a Florida bar in 1993 as part of an attempted revenge killing was executed Tuesday evening, the 26th person put to death in the U.S. this year.

Michael Bernard Bell, 54, was pronounced dead at 6:25 p.m. after receiving a lethal injection at Florida State Prison near Starke, said Bryan Griffin, a spokesperson for Gov. Ron DeSantis. Bell was convicted in 1995 and sentenced to death for the murders of Jimmy West and Tamecka Smith.

When the team warden asked Bell if he had any final words, he responded, “Thank you for not letting me spend the rest of my life in prison.”

Strapped to a gurney, Bell was alert and looking around the death chamber as the drugs began to flow into his outstretched left arm. After about 2 minutes, he closed his eyes and stopped moving. His breathing became more labored for about a minute and then slowed. At 6:15 p.m., the team warden checked Bell’s eyes and shouted his name, but there was no response. The color began to drain from Bell’s face.

— The Associated Press