Drifter Charged With Murdering 2 Homeless Men

A drifter who lived in the woods behind a strip mall confessed Tuesday to strangling two other homeless men, telling authorities he "got addicted to sucking the souls out of people."

Police had discovered the burned body of another homeless man in the area on Sunday, but initially thought it was an accidental death caused by an out-of-control campfire. Milam told a judge after his arrest that he wanted the death penalty. Garland Ray Milam, 40, was charged with two counts of aggravated homicide. Authorities said Milam walked into a grocery store Tuesday and told an employee he wanted to confess to a murder. The store called the police, and an officer found a body where Milam said it would be. "But as we were interviewing Mr. Milam, he admitted strangling each individual and killing both of them," Nashville police Lt. Patrick Taylor said. The names of the victims were not immediately released. Police said Milam killed the men after an argument over money and food at the camp. "I know I'm a monster," Milam said, as recorded by Nashville's WTVF-TV. "I got addicted to sucking the souls out of people that I was killing, and I'm going to do it again if I don't get the death penalty."--