Hawaii Island police are asking for witnesses to a theft July 26 in Puna.
In response to a 7:19 p.m. call, Puna Patrol officers met with a 17-year-old Pahoa boy who reported that a few minutes earlier he had been walking along Ainaloa Boulevard, just above the Highway 130 intersection, when a man sitting on a rock wall grabbed his backpack. As the two struggled for the backpack, several items fell out, and the victim was able to regain possession of the bag. He then ran to the home of an acquaintance and called the police.
The items that fell out of the bag were later recovered at the scene.
The suspect is described as “local,” in his mid-20s to early 30s, between 5-foot-10 and 6 feet tall, with a dark complexion, a thin build and thick eyebrows. He was wearing baggy tan pants with numerous pockets, a gray or silver Quicksilver T-shirt and a baseball cap facing backward. He was last seen heading on foot toward Highway 130.
Anyone with any information about this case should call the Hawaii Police Department’s nonemergency line at 935-3311 or Officer Joseph Picadura at 965-2716.
Those who prefer to remain a{nonymous may call the islandwide Crime Stoppers number at 961-8300 and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.