Task force apprehends wanted Texas man in Puna

A 19-year-old man wanted on an aggravated sexual assault warrant out of Texas is in police custody following his apprehension Wednesday in Puna.

Samuel Lawrence Adkins was apprehended by the Hawaii Fugitive Task Force at a rental home located on 8th Avenue in Keaau, according to the U.S. Marshals Service. Adkins was caught after reportedly fleeing on foot from the rear of the home.

Adkins’ arrest follows an Aug. 1 State of Texas-Travis County-issued arrest warrant charging him with first-degree aggravated sexual assault, according to the service. The alleged incident took place in the early hours of July 30 in Austin, where Adkins reportedly used the threat of deadly force to facilitate the assault.

The Lone Star Fugitive Task Force received information that Adkins fled Texas and was now in Hawaii, according to the service. The Hawaii Fugitive Task Force picked up the investigation and tracked Adkins to the residence in Keaau.

Adkins is currently being housed at the Hawaii Community Correctional Center in Hilo, where he awaiting an extradition hearing to return to Austin, Texas. He is being held on a $500,000 bond.

The Hawaii Fugitive Task Force is a statewide multiagency initiative that includes the Hawaii State Sheriffs, Hawaii Police Department, Maui County Police Department, Kauai County Police Department, Honolulu Police Department, and Hawaii High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, according to the service.