Execution Report: George Hopper

George "Andy" Anderson Hopper, 49, was executed by lethal injection on 8 March 2005 in Huntsville, Texas for the murder-for-hire of a 33-year-old woman.

On 4 October 1983 in Richardson, 4-year-old Peter Gailiunas Jr. found his mother, Rozanne, 33, lying on her bed, bloody, naked, and unconscious. Her mouth was stuffed with tissue and she was making a gurgling sound. She had been strangled and shot twice in the head. She was taken to the hospital, where she died after two days.

At the time of the murder, the victim had been having an affair with Larry Aylor, a wealthy homebuilder who was building a new house for the Gailiunases. Gailiunas and Aylor had both filed for divorce from their spouses and had plans to marry. Peter Gailiunas Sr. accused Aylor of the murder. Aylor, in turn, accused Peter. Both men were cleared, however, and no arrests were made. Aylor's socialite wife, Joy, 34, was also initially considered as a suspect.

Peter Gailiunas put up a $25,000 reward for information leading to an arrest for his wife's murder.

Larry and Joy Aylor reconciled after his affair was disclosed, but in 1986, they were again considering divorcing. Around that time, Larry was ambushed at his ranch by two gunmen, but he managed to escape. Two years later, he received an anonymous phone call from a woman claiming that the 1986 attempt on his life was connected to Rozanne Gailiunas' death. Aylor urged the woman to call the police.

That woman, Carol Garland, did call the police, and asked about the $25,000 reward. She then told police that her sister, Joy Aylor, paid her husband, William Garland, $5,000 to have Rozanne Gailiunas killed. Garland and another man, Brian Kreafle, in turn hired Hopper and paid him $1,500 to carry out the crime.

Hopper eluded police for five months, but was finally arrested in the Dallas area on 20 December 1988. He gave detailed audio and video confessions on 27 February 1989. He said that he went to Gailiunas' home posing as a flower delivery man. Once inside the house, he forced Gailiunas to remove her clothing, then tied her to a bed and attempted to rape her. He then began to strangle her with pantyhose. When the victim freed one of her hands and began struggling with him, he shot her in the head twice through a pillow.

The investigation went on for two more years before Hopper was indicted.

Hopper had no prior felony convictions. He had previously been charged with indecent exposure and had been arrested for pickpocketing.

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