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A 50-year-old man has been charged with killing his cellmate at the Macomb County Correctional Facility by strangling him, then stabbing him in one eye and impaling him through the other eye with a broken broomstick handle, according to prosecutors.
Aaron Samir Akel, who was already serving a 25- to 50-year sentence for second-degree murder in Wayne County, has now been charged with first-degree murder and possessing a weapon in prison.
Prosecutors allege Akel strangled his cellmate, 73-year-old Daniel Hosmer, before stabbing him in the eye and shoving a broken broomstick handle through the other eye early in the morning of April 22. Hosmer was discovered by another inmate later that morning and prison staff responded, but were unable to save his life.
Akel was arraigned Monday in 42-2 District Court in New Baltimore and was given a $500,000 cash bond. Even if he is able to pay this bond, he will not be released because of the prison sentence he is already serving, of which he has at least 22 years remaining.
He will be back in court Aug. 10.
"No matter who the victim is or the allegations surrounding their past, no one has the right to take another person's life. Our responsibility is to uphold the law, seek justice, and ensure that those accused of violent crimes are held accountable through the judicial process," Macomb County Prosecutor Pete Lucido said in a statement.
Hosmer was in prison serving a 20-to 60-year sentence for first-degree criminal sexual conduct of a child under 13. He had previously been convicted of second-degree criminal sexual conduct in 1993 and of taking indecent liberties with a child — a statute that no longer exists — in 1974.
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Inmate charged with killing cellmate in Michigan prison
