Officials reported that a Mississippi man, found guilty of raping and murdering a college student in the 1990s, was executed on Wednesday after over three decades on death row.

The Mississippi Department of Corrections announced that Charles Ray Crawford, aged 64, was executed by lethal injection at the Mississippi State Penitentiary in Parchman, with the procedure completed at 6:15 p.m. local time.

That same day, the department had taken to Facebook to confirm the impending execution, noting it was set to proceed unless a stay was issued.

“The U.S. Supreme Court rejected Crawford’s appeal for a stay, and earlier on Monday, Governor Tate Reeves also turned down his clemency plea. Before the execution, the state’s supreme court had dismissed motions seeking a stay,” the evening statement detailed.

“The U.S. Supreme Court denied Crawford’s request for a stay, and on Monday, Governor [Tate] Reeves denied Crawford’s Clemency request. Before the execution, the state supreme court had denied motions for a stay,” the evening release confirmed.

Mississippi death row inmate Charles Ray Crawford, who was convicted and sentenced to death in 1994 in the 1993 kidnapping and killing of a community college student, 20-year-old Kristy Ray. (Mississippi Department of Corrections via AP)

Crawford’s death marked the end of a long legal battle stemming from the 1993 kidnapping, rape and murder of 20-year-old Kristy Ray. 

She was abducted from her parents’ home in Tippah County on Jan. 29, 1993.

On the same day Ray disappeared, investigators found a ransom note made from magazine cutouts in the attic of Crawford’s former father-in-law. 

The note, which mentioned a woman named Jennifer, was turned over to authorities, who began searching for Crawford. 

He was arrested the next day, claiming he had been returning from a hunting trip. He later told investigators he had blacked out and could not remember killing Ray.

Charles Ray Crawford was executed by lethal injection at Mississippi State Penitentiary in Parchman. (Google Maps)

Authorities determined that Crawford took Ray from her family’s home to a remote cabin, where he handcuffed, raped, and fatally stabbed her in the chest. 

At the time of his arrest, he was also days away from standing trial for a 1991 assault in which he was accused of raping a 17-year-old girl and attacking her friend with a hammer. 

Juries later convicted Crawford in both cases, with the earlier rape conviction serving as an aggravating factor during his capital murder trial. He was sentenced to death in 1994.

Over the next three decades, Crawford filed appeals which were unsuccessful. 

Charles Crawford spent 30 years on death row and was put to death by lethal injection and for the 1993 kidnapping, rape and murder of 20-year-old Kristy Ray. (Jessie L. Bonner/AP Photo)

The Associated Press reported Crawford’s attorneys petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing his Sixth Amendment rights were violated when his defense lawyers conceded guilt and pursued an insanity defense against his wishes. 

“It’s almost like he didn’t even get the chance to have [an] innocent or guilty matter because his attorney just overrode his wishes from the outset,” said Krissy Nobile, the director of the Mississippi Office of Capital Post-Conviction Relief, who represented Crawford, per the AP.

The Mississippi Supreme Court rejected the appeal in September, ruling it was filed too late.

Reeves wrote on Facebook Oct. 13, “Justice must be served on behalf of victims. In Mississippi, it will be.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to the Mississippi Department of Corrections for comment.