Man who had killed girlfriend executed by lethal injection

A man who killed his ex-girlfriend and stopped fighting his death sentence because he no longer wanted to "manipulate the system" was executed by injection early Monday.

Roderick Abeyta, 44, had admitted that he killed Donna Martin, 38, in Las Vegas in 1989. He broke into her house in search of drugs and shot her twice in the head while she slept.As prison officials led Abeyta into the death chamber, he looked at three members of Martin's family and said: "I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

Last spring, Abeyta wrote a judge to say he wanted to be executed.

"I'm seeking to be held accountable for my actions," he said in a September interview. "I did a terrible wrong and I recognize that."