An Oklahoma inmate convicted of killing an 8-year-old girl was fatally strangled in January, officials confirmed Tuesday.

According to The Associated Press, Anthony Palma, 59, died Jan. 11 after suffering "ligature strangulation and blunt force trauma to the head," the state Medical Examiner's Office said.

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The Oklahoman reported last month that Palma's cellmate, convicted murderer Raymond "Mono" Pillado, 35, killed Palma with an electrical cord, officials said.

In 2017, Palma received a life sentence after he was convicted of first-degree murder in the death Kirsten Hatfield, who vanished from her Midwest City home in 1997, the AP reported. Authorities never found the girl's remains.

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Apartment complex community members look at the stuffed animals, snacks and drinks that rest at the base of a basketball goal with balloons in memoriam of Ja’Nylen Greggs in Atlanta on Friday, June 20, 2025. The apartment complex community is mourning 12-year-old Greggs after he was killed in the crossfire of a drive-by shooting. (Abbey Cutrer / AJC)

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