Eric Hall (DOC photo)
The Iowa Department of Corrections says a prisoner is now charged with murder in the death of another inmate at the Fort Dodge prison.
The Department says 44-year-old Eric Hall had been inside the cell of 59-year-old Thomas Daleske shortly before Daleske’s body was found on the evening of June 14th. The medical examiner determined Daleske had been strangled and hit in the head. Hall was questioned and admitted to killing Daleske, and was charged with first-degree murder.
Daleske entered the prison in October of 2000 on a 45-year sentence for Warren County charges related to sexual abuse and lascivious acts with a child. Hall was serving time on multiple burglary charges. The spokesman for the Department of Corrections could not go into any more details on what may’ve led to the attack because of the ongoing legal action.
The spokesman says an inmate killing a fellow inmate is rare in Iowa — and it is believed there have been only two other cases in the last ten years.