Trial set for
man accused
of firing shots
A jury trial has been set for 9 a.m. Aug. 26 for Raymond Lee Robinson, the Kailua-Kona man accused of shooting up his apartment and firing nearly 30 shots into the air in the parking lot of a resort in Kailua Village. Robinson appeared in 3rd Circuit Court before Judge Ronald Ibarra on Tuesday.
Witnesses and police at hearings last month described Robinson driving recklessly and discharging pistols and a rifle into the air in the parking lot of King Kamehameha’s Kona Beach Hotel. Reasons for the outburst are not clear. Robinson is charged with first degree terroristic threatening, first degree reckless endangering, second degree reckless endangering, reckless driving and five charges related to firearms. His bail is set at $123,000.
Man robbed
in Hilo park
Police are investigating a robbery Monday night at Liliuokalani Gardens in Hilo.
A 44-year-old Hilo man reported that an unknown man punched him and took his backpack at approximately 8:40 p.m. Monday.
The suspect was described as a “local” male, 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighing 150 pounds. He was last seen heading south on Lihiwai Street in what may have been a dark blue older-model Honda CRV.
Police ask anyone with information about this case to call the nonemergency line at 935-3311.
Those who prefer to remain anonymous may call the islandwide Crime Stoppers number at 961-8300. All Crime Stoppers information is kept confidential.
Tax preparer
indicted for preparing false returns
HONOLULU — A federal grand jury recently indicted 52-year-old Melanau Fohe Haiola of Kahuku for preparing false tax returns for her clients and for failing to report income she earned.
Haiola allegedly prepared 17 federal income tax returns that fraudulently claimed the American Opportunity Credit, a deduction for undergraduate education expenses; personal property rental expense deductions; or medical, dental, or employee expenses, according to the indictment charges. In addition, Haiola allegedly filed false tax returns for herself for the 2009 and 2010 tax years by under-reporting her income by a total of $114,315.
Florence T. Nakakuni, United States attorney for the District of Hawaii, said according to the indictment, Haiola, as owner and operator of Nau’s Tax Preparation, personally prepared, and supervised others in the preparation of, hundreds of federal income tax returns.
If convicted, Haiola faces up to three years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for each of the 19 charges.
The prosecution resulted from an investigation conducted by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Marshall Silverberg.
Sheriff impersonators victimizing residents in latest scam
The state Department of Public Safety is warning the public about a scam in which individuals are calling people and claiming to be sheriff deputies serving warrants for people who did not show up for jury duty or pay a ticket.
The scammers are offering to clear the warrant if people will pay for their product or service. Deputy sheriffs will never call people about warrants having to do with jury duty or solicit the purchase of anything, according to the department.
Those who have been affected by this scam or received such calls should contact Sheriff Division at 586-1352.
Agencies collaborate to treat coral disease
Lihue, Kauai – The Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Division of Aquatic Resources this month called together a number of partners to address the ongoing Kauai black band coral disease outbreak.
This is the third meeting of the Kauai Management Response Team. The Response Team will review the latest data about the disease and consider management options.
“DAR is aware of the black band coral disease on Kauai and is actively implementing the Rapid Response Contingency Plan, which provides us with a framework to respond to these types of events. We are working together to coordinate research and management efforts,” said DAR Administrator Frazer McGilvray.
DAR has been supporting research being conducted by the University of Hawaii, U.S. Geological Survey, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to determine how widespread the disease is and whether any environmental factors could be contributing to the infections. So far, research has indicated that the disease is affecting three species of rice corals, genus Montipora, occurs predominately on the north shore, and it seems to be occurring in seasonal “hot spots” of infection.
Kauai DAR staff including aquatic biologist Don Heacock, will support the next stage of UH field work scheduled for this summer. The team is also launching an online resource — dlnr.hawaii.gov/reefresponse — which outlines the research and management team’s findings.
The public can support this effort by reporting any new coral disease outbreak observations to The Eyes of the Reef Network.
Look around when diving or swimming for signs of the Kauai black band disease outbreaks; take photos and send them to RRCPCoordinator@gmail.com. Make a report using the EOR Network “Coral Disease, Bleaching, and COTS” online report form. Do not collect samples or specimens.
Hawaii releases
video of teen dropping from jet
HONOLULU — The security footage looks unassuming at first: a Hawaiian Airlines jet parked at a gate at the Maui airport under overcast skies, and workers going through their regular routine. Then, the 15-year-old’s legs dangle briefly from the plane’s belly and he drops to the concrete.
Hawaii transportation officials released video Tuesday of a California teen hopping from a jet’s wheel well April 20 after stowing away for a 5 ½-hour flight.
The video largely confirms previous accounts given by FBI and airport officials of Yahya Abdi’s seemingly unbelievable story: that he ran away from home, hopped a fence at Mineta San Jose International Airport and climbed into the wheel well of the closest plane.
Abdi survived the flight at 35,000 feet despite low oxygen and freezing temperatures.
The six minutes of security footage that the Hawaii Department of Transportation released show Abdi lowering himself from the Boeing 767 and jumping to the ground.
He sits on the concrete for 13 seconds, then gets up and slowly walks toward the front of the plane. Abdi walks up to an airport worker driving a cart, and the two chat for about three minutes before walking away together.
Hawaii Department of Transportation spokeswoman Caroline Sluyter said the footage was released after the state attorney general’s office reviewed media requests.
San Jose, California, police spokesman Albert Morales said the Somali immigrant flew back to California over the weekend and was being cared for by Santa Clara County Child Protective Services.
No safety harness
in fatal Maui
zip-line accident
MAKAWAO, Maui — Police say the woman who died in last week’s zip-line accident in Makawao wasn’t secured to the landing platform with any type of safety harness.
Police said in a statement Tuesday 29-year-old Patricia Rabellizsa of Kihei was working on the platform when someone riding the zip-line at Piiholo Ranch came barreling toward the platform.
Rabellizsa grabbed onto the rider in an attempt to stop the rider, but the momentum sent them both along the line. Police say Rabellizsa managed to hang on for a few minutes before losing her grip and falling about 150 feet into the gulch below.
Officials from the company haven’t responded to requests for comment.
Zip-line attractions send thrill-seekers gliding along cables at speeds approaching 30 mph.
Matson’s 1st-quarter profit falls 63 percent
HONOLULU — Shipping and logistics company Matson Inc. said Tuesday it earned $3.4 million during the first quarter, far below its profit of $9.1 million a year earlier because of the timing of fuel surcharge collections.
Matson CEO Matt Cox said demand in Hawaii and elsewhere is staying strong even though the surcharges significantly hurt the company’s results for the quarter.
“Our businesses are running well and continue to generate substantial cash flow,” Cox said in a statement.
Revenue dropped less than 1 percent to $392.5 million.
The earnings amounted to 8 cents per share for the quarter that ended March 31, down from 21 cents per share during the same quarter a year ago.
The company also said it paid $1 million in legal expenses related to the spill of about 1,400 tons of molasses into Honolulu Harbor in September. The substance oozed from a pipe that was thought to be sealed off, killing about 26,000 fish and other marine life.
Matson said Tuesday that it doesn’t yet know how future costs related to the spill might affect the company in future quarters.
Shares of Matson dropped 85 cents, or 3.5 percent, to $23.71 on Tuesday before the results were released. They were unchanged in afterhours trading.
By local and wire sources
