10-year sentence given in killing, freezing of body

An elderly Las Vegas man accused of beating his handicapped sister-in-law to death and then freezing her body was sentenced Monday to 10 years in prison.

Wilman Oslund, 68, could have received a sentence ranging from probation to 20 years in prison in the December 1998 death of Sheila Manantan, 49. Oslund will have to serve at least four years before he is eligible for parole.

According to police, Oslund was left to care for Manantan -- who suffered from cerebral palsy and mental challenges -- after the death of his wife in November 1997.

Police believe Oslund would often tie Manantan to a toilet for hours at a time as punishment for throwing food and urinating on herself.

On the day of her death, police believe Oslund beat Manantan with a shower curtain rod and stomped on her after she fell in the shower and pulled down the curtain.

Because he feared what police would say about the bruises, he froze her in his freezer.

Three days later Oslund defrosted her, dressed her, called the coroner's office and said she died of natural causes.

Oslund entered a plea agreement in January, admitting that prosecutors have enough evidence to convict him of voluntary manslaughter with use of a deadly weapon.

On Monday, Chief Deputy District Attorney L.J. O'Neale told District Judge John McGroarty that, after Oslund's wife died, Oslund continued to cash the disability checks he received on behalf of his wife's sister.

Over the course of several months Oslund and his then-girlfriend, Sherry Kahalehoe, 30, used the money to visit 94 doctors and obtain prescriptions for more than 14,000 Loratab pills.

The abuse of the pain killers led to Manantan being neglected for hours on end and their home falling into squalor.

"There were talks about putting her in a group home and she was excited about that," O'Neale said. "It never happened. It would have cost money. It would have been something for her and not for the defendant."

Oslund has shown no remorse, O'Neale said. His callousness apparently was obvious when he called the coroner's office after he thawed his sister-in-law. "There's a dead body here, come pick it up," O'Neale said.

Although Manantan had other relatives, Oslund alienated all of them, O'Neale said.

"He isolated her with a pain that had to be far worse than the physical pain that ended her life," O'Neale said.

Oslund, in a long, rambling statement, told McGroarty he was guilty only of stupidity for not providing more care for Manantan. He said he doesn't know how she could have died of blunt force trauma.

Oslund's attorney, Deputy Public Defender Curtis Brown, suggested Kahalehoe was responsible for the tragedy.

Kahalehoe, who married Oslund after Manantan's death, committed suicide by overdosing on drugs.

Brown said the system, too, let Manantan down. She was rejected by three health care facilities, he said.

Manantan's niece and Oslund's daughter, Sheriann Oslund, told McGroarty Manantan was the kindest aunt.

"How can I protect my son when I couldn't see how evil my own father was?" Sheriann Oslund asked, sobbing.

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