Couple charged in death of disabled woman

Wednesday, Aug. 4, 1999 | 2:40 a.m.

LAS VEGAS - A Las Vegas couple have been charged with the beating death of a severely disabled woman whose body was stored in a freezer for days.

Prior to her death in December, Sheila Manantan, 49, lived in squalor, was beaten and tied to a toilet for hours, detectives claim. She died from repeated blows to her body but prolonged neglect also played a role in the fatality, Clark County Coroner Ron Flud said Tuesday.

Ms. Manantan's caretakers, Wilman Oslund, 67, and his girlfriend, Sherry Kahalehoe, 30, were charged Tuesday with second-degree murder following an eight-month police investigation.

On Dec. 15, 1998, Oslund called the coroner's office to report that Ms. Manantan, his sister-in-law, had died. Oslund had been caring for Ms. Manantan, who was mentally challenged and had cerebral palsy, since his wife, Ms. Manantan's sister, died in November 1997.

The coroner's office determined the circumstances of the death were suspicious and notified homicide detectives.

Three weeks prior to her death, Ms. Manantan was taken by Oslund to University Medical Center for treatment of numerous sores that had become infested with maggots, according to a police affidavit.

Oslund told police that to prevent Ms. Manantan from scratching the sores, he "had tied Sheila up to a portable toilet seat, naked, for three to four hours using a piece of rope. Detectives found blood on the legs of the toilet seat as well as on a length of rope under the seat."

After finding his sister-in-law's lifeless body, Oslund told police he washed the body in a bathtub, then stuffed the corpse into an upright freezer where it remained for two days. Eventually, Oslund decided to report the death to authorities, the affidavit said.

"Sherry (Kahalehoe) stated that after they took Sheila out of the freezer, they put her into the bathtub with warm water," Detective John Mikolainis wrote. "They did this approximately four to five times until she softened up, then they dressed her and put her back on the bed."

Oslund told detectives he believes his sister-in-law's death was accidental.

Oslund and Ms. Kahalehoe also face kidnapping, conspiracy and accessory to commit murder charges.