Naman Shrestha
The calming trails of the Phoenix Canal became filled with trails of blood when two young women of the city, Angela Brosso and Melanie Bernas, were brutally killed about ten months apart in 1992 and 1993. Despite the best attempts from the detectives, the investigation didn’t yield any solid leads, and the case stayed unsolved for more than two decades. Thanks to new technology, the investigators managed to catch the killer responsible for the murders. The entire case and the investigation that ensued are covered in CBS’ ’48 Hours: Unmasking the Zombie Hunter,’ which also features exclusive interviews with the victims’ loved ones.
Angela Brosso and Melanie Bernas Lost Their Lives While Enjoying a Bike Ride Along the Phoenix Canal
On November 8, 1970, in Pennsylvania, Linda Brosso Strock welcomed a little bundle of joy into the world in the form of Angela Marie Brosso. Growing up in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, Angela was a shy girl who liked to dress up. From her childhood, she loved animals, especially guinea pigs and rabbits, so much so that she spent almost all her earnings from working at Kentucky Fried Chicken in an attempt to save a sick bunny. Given her passion for animals, she had naturally contemplated becoming a veterinarian at some point. However, she ended up enrolling in the DeVry Institute of Technology for a couple of years before transferring to the Los Angeles DeVry.
After graduating from there, she landed a job at a Phoenix electronics company called Syntellect Inc. Angela eventually settled in with her boyfriend, Joe, and a pet ferret in Phoenix, Arizona. On the fateful evening of November 8, 1992, the 22-year-old tech worker went for a relaxing bike ride along the Phoenix Canal. When she didn’t return to her apartment, Joe went looking for her but couldn’t find any trace of her. So, he reported her missing to the police. The following morning, Angela’s loved ones’ worst nightmares came true when her torso was discovered in a field next to the canal trail. About ten days later, her head was found by a man fishing along the canal. The autopsy revealed that she had been stabbed to death.
With no evidence of her killer, there was hardly any progress in the investigation. It all changed when, about 10 months later, in September 1993, the remains of a 17-year-old named Melanie Bernas were found in the canal, near the spot where Angela’s remains were discovered. Born on September 14, 1976, in Phoenix, Arizona, Melanie Beth Bernas was a junior at Arcadia High School. The reserved and quiet teenager was close with her sister, Jill Bernas Canetta. Similar to Angela, Melanie also met her demise while riding her bike along the Phoenix Canal on September 21, 1993. The authorities learned that she, too, was stabbed in the back. Both of them were also reportedly sexually assaulted. Given the similarity between the killings, the police suspected that both girls were killed by the same person.
Angela Brosso and Melanie Bernas’ Killer Was Also Linked to Other Violent Crimes
The investigators gathered all the evidence they found at both crime scenes, including a matching male DNA from the remains of Angela Brosso and Melanie Bernas. However, due to a lack of advancements in technology, it couldn’t be used to identify the perpetrator for over two decades. In 2014, the detectives made the most of DNA and genetic genealogy, which helped them focus on a few persons of interest, including 42-year-old Bryan Patrick Miller. At the time, he was a divorced single father who participated in festivals as the Zombie Hunter, his alter ego.
In order to solidify their suspicion about him, they had to collect his DNA and run it against the male DNA they found at the crime scenes. Thus, on January 2, 2015, an undercover detective met the Amazon warehouse employee, who came along with his 15-year-old daughter, Sarah, at a local Chili’s restaurant, pretending to offer him a job. After the meeting, the investigator collected the glass of water from which he had drunk for his DNA. After his DNA matched the one found on Angela and Melanie, he was taken into custody and interrogated within hours. During his interview, he denied having anything to do with the killings and maintained his innocence. He was eventually charged with two counts of first-degree murder.
Upon digging deeper into his past, the authorities learned that in May 1989, he was arrested and charged with aggravated assault for stabbing Celeste Bentley from behind. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to juvenile detention until he turned 18. Several years later, in 2002, he was also accused of attacking Melissa Ruiz-Ramirez, who managed to survive the attack. Although he was arrested and charged with first-degree assault with a deadly weapon, he claimed self-defense. During the trial, the jury acquitted him of the charges.
Bryan Patrick Miller is Currently on Death Row
Finally, in October 2022, Bryan Patrick Miller’s trial for the murders of Angela Brosso and Melanie Bernas commenced. The defense didn’t deny his involvement in the crime but claimed that he was not guilty by reason of insanity. They claimed that the alleged torture he endured during his childhood led to his violent sexual behavior. The defense alleged that the abuse caused him to develop severe mental health issues, including dissociative amnesia. On the other hand, the prosecution focused on the incriminating DNA evidence against the defendant.
Eventually, in April 2023, Bryan was found guilty of killing Angela and Melanie. During his sentencing hearing in June 2023, he took the stand and addressed the court. He stated, “I am not looking for sympathy today. This time is for the family and friends of the victims. I cannot imagine what pain they have endured for all these years…I know I am different. … I thought it had to do with what my mother did to me.” In the end, he was given the death penalty for his crimes. While he was incarcerated, he was questioned about life on death row.
He wrote, “It is better than county jail, but it is obvious that isolation has taken its toll on many people here. From what I saw of people in county jail compared to here, the majority of the people here are by far not what I would consider the worst of the worst. It is by far safer than anywhere else in prison even though they have nothing really to lose anymore.” He elaborated on the same, stating, “I see wasted lives and potential that would have been beneficial to society … I have always been against the death penalty and the more I see what death row is and who is here and how they got here, I am even more against it.” Still maintaining his innocence, he is currently on death row at Arizona State Prison Complex – Tucson in Tuscon, Arizona.
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