Mystery as death row inmate dies by suicide whilst awaiting execution for heinous crimes
A disturbing case has shaken Florida after a death row inmate managed to take his own life while awaiting execution for the brutal murder of a 13-year-old girl.
Matthew Caylor, 50, died by suicide on August 19 while being held in prison. Authorities have not revealed how he was able to kill himself, and questions are now being asked about why correctional officers did not prevent it.
State Attorney Larry Basford confirmed the news and made a blunt statement to the press, saying Caylor had “saved the taxpayers of Florida a lot of money” by ending his own life. Basford described him as a “sexual predator” who had fled parole in Georgia before committing his crimes in Bay County. According to Basford, after facing trial and appeals, Caylor knew the outcome was inevitable.
Caylor’s death happened the same day Florida carried out another execution. On August 19, Kayle Bates was put to death by lethal injection, marking the state’s 10th execution this year.
Caylor had been sentenced to death for the 2013 abduction, rape, and murder of 13-year-old Melinda Hinson. The young girl disappeared while her family was staying at the Valu-Lodge Motel in Panama City. Two days later, her body was found hidden under Caylor’s motel bed.
Court records reveal that Caylor, who was selling drugs from his room at the time, had already fled Georgia where he was facing probation for molesting a 14-year-old. In a chilling detail, he reportedly told investigators that because he had already been accused of crimes he believed were false, he would “make it worth it” when Hinson knocked on his door. He admitted that he strangled her out of rage connected to his earlier conviction.
The case left a permanent scar on Melinda’s family. Her mother, Rhonda McNallin, has spoken openly about her heartbreak. In a 2020 interview, she said she wished the motel where her daughter died had been “burnt to the ground,” calling it painful to know that was the last place her daughter had been alive.
On social media, she has shared the depth of her grief, writing:
“There is not a second, minute, or hour that goes by that I am not thinking about you and how much I would do or give to see your beautiful smiling face and put my arms around you. I miss you so much… I can only imagine how much of a beautiful young lady you would have grown up to be today. I love you and miss you so much.”
The mystery remains over how a man already sentenced to die was able to end his life while under close watch in prison. For the victim’s family, however, the pain of losing Melinda will never truly fade, no matter how Caylor’s life came to an end.
