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Alleged wife-killer charged with murder
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Posted on Aug 01 2004
In a case that would show how serious domestic violence could be in CNMI homes, a man is facing murder charges in court for assaulting his common-law wife to death using his bare hands.
Thirty-seven-year-old Agilino Passiano Elyeisar is now in custody for the killing of Vicky Ann Maratita Igitol, CNMI chief prosecutor David Hutton said.
Hutton and Deputy Attorney General Clyde Lemons filed Friday a criminal information charging Elyeisar with second-degree murder. The court has set a preliminary hearing on the case this coming Friday, according to Hutton.
A preliminary hearing is a judicial procedure wherein evidence is presented to establish reasonable belief that the defendant probably committed the crime he is being accused of, to warrant his continued detention.
Hutton said results of the autopsy conducted on the woman’s body indicated that she was murdered. Police earlier said that the woman sustained serious neck injuries after being assaulted by Elyeisar. The woman eventually expired after being admitted to the Commonwealth Health Center’s Intensive Care Unit.
Based on the criminal information, the killing happened last March 1, reportedly at the couple’s Kagman’s residence. As of mid-May, though, lawmen were still conducting a manhunt on Elyeisar.
“We are taking the case very seriously,” Hutton said.
The killing of Igitol, who used to work at the Office of Youth Affairs, sparked a candlelight vigil early last month to condemn the evils of domestic violence.
The Department of Public Safety responded to an average of 300 domestic violence cases a year in the past several years, based on a report by the Domestic Violence Intervention Center. The center noted, however, that many unreported cases even exacerbate the high figure.
Earlier this year, Gov. Juan N. Babauta signed a legislative bill into law that provides for mandatory jail terms for domestic violence. The Domestic Violence Criminal Act also criminalized the act of stalking.
