Man sentenced to 30 years for beating wife to death on cruise is found dead in cell

A Utah man serving 30 years after being convicted of beating his wife to death on Alaskan cruise has been found dead in his cell.

Kenneth Manzanares, 43, was found unresponsive in his cell at the Lemon Creek Correctional Center in Juneau, Alaska, around 7 a.m. last Wednesday, the Alaska Department of Corrections said in a statement.

Medical staff and outside EMS worked on him for about 45 minutes and pronounced him dead at 7:42, police said.

This July 26, 2017 file photo shows the Emerald Princess cruise ship docked in Juneau, Alaska. A federal judge on Thursday, June 3, 2021, in Juneau, Alaska, sentenced Kenneth Manzanares charged with first-degree murder to 30 years in prison for the beating death of his wife, Kristy Manzanares while aboard the ship on a cruise to Alaska. (Becky Bohrer/)

Manzanares had been in DOC custody since July 26, 2017, the Alaska Department of Corrections said in a statement. He was a sentenced federal inmate convicted of second-degree murder.

This death is the seventh in DOC custody this year, the department said.

Next of kin have been notified, police did not suspect foul play, and the cause appeared natural, the statement said, adding that his death was not related to COVID-19.

Manzanares was convicted of murdering his wife during an argument on an anniversary cruise to Alaska back in 2017, as the ship was docked in U.S. waters outside Southeast Alaska. Two of their children were on hand and witnessed part of the beating.

Kristy Mazanares had told Kenneth Manzanares she wanted a divorce, and he admitted to authorities that his behavior had gotten out of hand. He also dismissed the two children, who merely moved to an adjacent room and caught party of the beating and all of the screaming, according to NBC News.