Exclusive:
A man with a “good sense of humour” is looking to find love – the only catch is that he is on death row for murdering and raping a young girl and her babysitter
Joseph Zieler elbows attorney in the face
A Death row inmate who had the word “killer” etched on his teeth after being sentenced to die is now looking for love.
Shameless thug Joseph Zieler, who also elbowed his lawyer in court, is being executed for murdering an 11-year-old girl and her babysitter. But before the evil child killer meets his maker, he wants to find a female companion from his prison cell.
The Mirror can reveal how he started a profile on a companion site called Wire of Hope – founded by a woman who moved 4,000 miles to marry and have a baby with a death row inmate.
Despite his harrowing crimes, women can now directly contact Zieler, 62, and start a romantic relationship. He shared two photos on his profile, including one where he is significantly younger, and boasted about his “good sense of humour”.
Appealing for a connection, Zieler, from Fort Myers, Florida, wrote: “I am a straight guy who is looking for a female penfriend. I love music and am a skilled guitarist. I also enjoy handicrafts such as shoe mending.
“I have been a passionate sailor and love all kinds of boats as well as motorbikes and cars. I am fit and keep up with a rigorous exercise program in prison. I am a believer and take comfort in the Catholic religion.”
The child murderer concluded: “I have a good sense of humour and enjoy a good joke and a laugh. I’m looking forward to hearing from you!”
Joseph Zieler’s double murder
Robin Cornell, 11, and her babysitter, Lisa Story, 32, were murdered in an apartment in Cape Coral, Florida, in 1990.
The mother of Robin, Jan Cornell, was staying the night at her boyfriend’s home, and found the bodies the following day. Both victims had been asphyxiated and sexually assaulted.
Her little girl was lying face down in the bathroom. Jan’s last words to her daughter hours before were: “Good night, I’m going to Donnie’s, I love you.”
The murder investigation eventually went cold and Jan had to wait more than two decades to get justice. This came after a DNA breakthrough linked Zieler to the grisly scene. His semen was found on the bedsheet where Robin was sleeping.
Zieler was arrested in 2016. During his trial it was argued the murders were personal because he allegedly “had it out” for Jan who he even sent a letter to from prison – leading to an additional harassment charge.
Eventually, he was found guilty of the murders before being sentenced to the death penalty in June 2023. During his sentencing, he bizarrely elbowed his own lawyer, and had the word “killer” scrawled on his teeth. Attorney Kevin Shirley told Fox4: “It seemed like he didn’t want our conversation to be picked up by the microphones. So he waved me down and I bent over, and he struck me.
In court, the monster said: “I have nothing to do with this. I maintain my innocence.”
The rapist and killer is currently scheduled to appeal his death sentence. Speaking to The News-Press last month, Jan said: “I’m keeping my faith in the justice system, and it’s going to prove that the justice system works. Everyone knew that this was going to happen. It’s not a shock.”
Wire of Hope
The two friends who started Wire of Hope claim prison correspondence helps inmates to “escape the daily monotony and darkness, feel human again, appreciated, and sometimes even loved”.
Sigrid, one of the founders, moved from France to settle closer to the Union Correctional Institution in Florida. This was so she could regularly visit Alan Wade who she had been writing letters to. He was on death row for murdering retired couple Reggie and Carol Summer who he and accomplices then buried alive 20 years ago this year. His death sentence was later overturned to life.
Despite being a prisoner, he managed to have a baby with Sigrid who said in 2021: “I started writing to death row inmates because I was against the death penalty. I believe in second chances and rehabilitation.
“When I started to realise I was having feelings for him and him for me, we both got scared. We took a step back and we tried to stop writing to each other and we were both miserable. And after six weeks he wrote back – his first words were ‘I love you’.”
She said her family did not approve and thought she was the “worst person ever” but she claimed she was unsure why her relationship bothered others so much.
