The Office of the Attorney General has charged Omar Takada, an inmate at the Palau jail, with Manslaughter, for the death of another inmate Russell Takisang Iyar. The charge of manslaughter is a Class A felony, punishable by up to 25 years imprisonment without the possibility of suspension of the sentence and an optional fine of up to $50,000.
According to the charging document, Takada attacked Iyar upon Iyar’s return to his cell, a room he shared with Mr. Takada and three other inmates. The police report said that Takada admitted to waiting with chisels as weapons to attack his cellmates upon their return to the cell.
Alleged statements from Takada obtained by the police said he retaliated against his cellmates for their attack on him the previous night.
Omar’s cellmates were out of their cells for their 2-hour privilege while Omar had remained in the cell. Iyar was the first to return to the cell, where he was immediately stabbed in the neck by Takada.
Two chisels were taken from Takada, one with blood on it.
Takisang was taken to the hospital, where attempts to save his life failed, and he died.
The stabbing death of this inmate led to Senate oversight over the entire Ministry of Justice this past week. The purpose of the oversight was to find out what contributed to or led to the stabbing death and what can be done to prevent such occurrences in the future.
The Vice President and Minister of Justice Uduch Sengebau-Senior cited the overcrowding of Koror jail and the lack of adequate manpower or police officers as major contributing factors.
This case was filed this March 21, 2023.