Texas | Ex-Missouri City cop Robert Fratta scheduled to January 10 execution for 1994 murder of wife Farah

What to know about Robert Fratta, ex-Houston cop convicted in wife's murder, as his execution nears?

Ex-Missouri City police officer Robert Fratta, convicted of plotting his estranged wife's murder, is set to be executed Jan. 10 in Huntsville after spending more than 26 years on death row.

Here's everything to know about Fratta's case, as his execution date nears:

Who is Robert Fratta?

Fratta, 65, was sentenced to death in 1996 after a Harris County jury found him guilty of orchestrating a murder-for-hire plot that led to the death of his 34-year-old wife, Farah Fratta. The two were in the midst of a divorce and custody battle over their three children at the time of the murder.

Farah Fratta was shot in the head as she stepped out of her car at her Atascocita home in November 1994. At the time of her murder, her estranged husband was at a Catholic church in Humble with his 7-year-old child, where he made several calls from an office to allegedly check on the hitman's progress.

2 other men involved in the plot, middleman and getaway driver Joseph Prystash, and gunman Howard Guidry, were also sentenced to death. Fratta is the 1st to face execution.

Robert Fratta, a former Missouri City public safety officer, was convicted of hiring hitman Howard Guidry and getaway driver Joseph Prystash to kill his wife Farah in 1994.

Following his arrest, the Fratta's 3 young children, were raised by their maternal grandparents, Lex and Betty Baquer.

When is Robert Fratta's execution date?

Fratta is scheduled to be killed in the 1st Texas execution of 2023. He is set for lethal injection at 6 p.m. Jan. 10. in Huntsville.

What does Robert Fratta say about his execution?

Since his conviction, Fratta has maintained his innocence and alleged that his late wife's father framed him.

Fratta was granted a new trial in 2009 after an appeals court determined Guidry and Prystash's confessions should not have been admitted into evidence during the 1st trial. He was convicted at the retrial and all subsequent appeals were denied.

Fratta recently joined a lawsuit with 2 other death row inmates alleging that the state plans to use expired drugs to carry out their executions.

Prison officials have denied that the drugs are expired, the Associated Press reported.

Lawyers for the inmates have requested an evidentiary hearing to determine if prisoners are at “serious risk of pain and suffering" during the executions.

In July 2022, Fratta allegedly made a plea for "female friends" to witness his execution on the Write a Prisoner website.

Fratta's lawyer says he did not write the post, and that it's possible someone else did.

Source: Houston Chronicle, Rebecca Hennes, January 6, 2023

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