American kills himself in Taiwan court upon drug conviction
BEIJING » An American man killed himself by slashing his neck with a scissor blade inside a courtroom in Taiwan after being given a four-year sentence on drugs charges, prompting moves to increase security.
Tyrel Martin Marhanka, 41, was rushed to a hospital where he was pronounced dead Thursday, according to a statement from the Changhua District Court.
Marhanka had been indicted in March for growing opium and marijuana at a rented site in Changhua county in central Taiwan, said the official Taiwanese Central News Agency.
CNA said Marhanka told investigators he was growing the plants purely for his own consumption. The American had been teaching English and was living in Changhua with his Taiwanese wife and two children. The Taipei Times said he’d lived in Taiwan for more than 15 years.
The court said Marhanka apparently smuggled two scissor blades by hiding them in a magazine tucked underneath his arm. The metal detecting gate at the courthouse failed to detect the blades, the court said.
Both the blades and the magazine were recovered by police, the official statement said.
The court expressed regrets over Marhanka’s death and said it had installed two X-ray scanners to strengthen the security check.
10 responses to “American kills himself in Taiwan court upon drug conviction”
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Guess he couldn’t take 4 years without drugs. How did he get a hold of scissors right in front of everyone?
Did you read the article?
Taiwan is not a place to meddle with the law. Sounds kinda harsh
Maybe we wouldn’t have such a problem with crime in the USA if we were a little harder on crime. Another place you don’t want to get caught with drugs is Singapore. Guess what you can walk the beautiful clean city anytime of day or night.
The war on drugs has been a historic, spectacular failure. Driving drugs underground caused uncounted murders and mayhem. Increasing penalties would only make things worse.
Outsource our criminals to Taiwan or similar country.
Other news reports say that he had a large stash of illegal drugs including many marijuana plants (200+) and 10 opium poppies and several hundred poppy seeds. Would all that be for “personal consumption”?
He should have considered himself lucky and accepted the 4 years and possible appeal. Possessing commercial quantities or trafficking of marijuana can result in the death penalty.
whatda fffff???details don’t add up. especially the part about the metal detector failing to detect the blades.
If it’s made it the US its okay, Japan mo bettah, but if Taiwan you bettah take the extended warranty braddah!
Are Taiwanese prisons that bad?