Arizona has executed a death row inmate for setting two people on fire more than 20 years ago, killing one of them and changing the other's life forever.

The state executed Leroy McGill, 63, by lethal injection on Wednesday, May 20, for the 2002 murder of 21-year-old Charles Perez. McGill set Perez and his girlfriend on fire after they accused him of theft, court records say. Perez died of his injuries the next day while his girlfriend survived with severe burns.

"After more than two decades, justice was finally served for Charles Perez and the woman who survived this horrific attack. What Leroy McGill did − pouring gasoline on the victims and setting them on fire − was among the cruelest acts imaginable," Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell said in a statement.

"My thoughts are with the family of Charles Perez and the survivor, who has lived with the physical and emotional scars of that night for nearly 24 years," she said. "May this bring them some measure of peace."

McGill was pronounced dead at 10:26 a.m. PT. "I'm going home soon," he said as part of his brief last words in the death chamber as he lay strapped to the execution chair, according to multiple news media members who witnessed the death.

McGill's was the 13th execution in the U.S. this year and the first in 2026 for Arizona. Two more executions are scheduled this week in Tennessee and Florida.

Here's what you need to know about McGill's crime and his execution.

On July 13, 2002, Leroy McGill walked into the Phoenix apartment of Charles Perez, 21, and Nova Banta, 24. He then threw a cup of gasoline and set fire to them with a match, court records show. Prosecutors say McGill mixed Styrofoam with the gasoline to create a “napalm-like substance that would stick to his victims and cause them more pain," an allegations his attorneys deny.

McGill attacked Perez and Banta because the couple had accused him of stealing a shotgun. Before he lit the match, McGill told the couple that they shouldn't talk about people behind their backs, court records say.

Perez died of his injuries the day after the attack. Banta survived though she had severe burns covering 75% of her body.

In recent months, McGill had been fighting to have his execution stopped, mostly over what his lawyers said were errors by his trial attorneys at the time. Those efforts failed, and he declined to file a clemency petition with the state.

McGill's last meal included cottage pie, green salad, onion rings, bread and butter, and chocolate cake.

McGill's is one of three executions being carried out during a two-day period this week. On Thursday, May 21, Tennessee is planning to put Tony Carruthers to death for the 1994 killing of three people at a cemetery, including a woman who was buried alive. Also Thursday, Florida is scheduled to execute Richard Knight for the 2000 stabbing deaths of a pregnant woman and her 4-year-old daughter.

It's not unusual for multiple executions to be held during the same week or on the same day, with as many as five falling during the same week in recent years. Experts agree that the timing of various states and when they schedule executions is coincidental.

So far this year, states have executed 12 inmates. The executions of McGill, Carruthers and Knight will make that 15. Another nine executions are scheduled for the rest of the year so far but that figure is sure to increase as states can issue death warrants at any time.

Last year, there were 47 executions in the U.S., making it the deadliest year for death row inmates since 2009. Executions this year are running slightly behind the amount conducted during the same time period last year.

Contributing: Perry Vandell, The Arizona Republic

Amanda Lee Myers is a senior crime reporter who covers the death penalty, cold case investigations and breaking news for USA TODAY. Follow her on X at @amandaleeusat

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Leroy McGill, who set a couple on fire in 2002, is executed in Arizona