Nearly six months after a town of Oswego woman was found dead in her home amid suspicious circumstances, members of the Oswego County Sheriff’s Department have a suspect in custody for manslaughter.

Frank W. Ward, 45, of 171 Chapel Road, Oswego Town, was charged Monday with 1st-degree manslaughter, a class-B felony, after an investigation into Irene Doviak’s death. Doviak, 54, was found deceased in her Chapel Road home on Nov. 18, 2007.

In the days following the initial investigation, Ward was arrested on one count of assault in the 1st-degree, a class-B felony. Since his arrest in November, Ward has been incarcerated in the Oswego County Correctional Facility without bail.

According to a press release provided by the sheriff’s department, the charges were upgraded to manslaughter because “further investigation and information revealed Ms. Doviak died as the result of the injuries allegedly inflicted upon her by Ward.”

Ward was arraigned on the manslaughter charge before the Hon. John J. Elliott, acting judge for Oswego Town Court, and remanded to the Oswego County Correctional Facility without bail. He will return to court Wednesday.