KAILUA-KONA — A judge has ordered no bail for three individuals charged in connection with a shootout Friday at South Point that left a Hawaii Police sergeant injured and suspected cop killer Justin Waiki dead.
Kona District Court Judge Margaret Masunaga maintained the no-bail status for Jorge Pagan-Torres, 35, and 30-year-old Malia Lajala, both of Hilo, and 29-year-old Krystle Ferreira, of Waimea, during their initial appearances in court Monday morning. A preliminary hearing has been set for Tuesday.
Pagan-Torres, Lajala and Ferreira were each charged at 1:30 p.m. Sunday with one count each of accomplice to first-degree attempted murder, accomplice to not having a case or place to keep a revolver, and criminal conspiracy, according to police.
In addition, Pagan-Torres was charged with two counts of violating probation and Lajala was charged with two counts third-degree promoting dangerous drugs, police said Sunday evening.
The charges stem from an incident Friday on South Point Road in Ka’u during which Waiki — who was wanted in the July 17 fatal shooting of Officer Bronson K. Kaliloa, 46 — was reportedly located in a Toyota 4Runner at a checkpoint established to search vehicles coming in and out of the area after police received information that Waiki was in the area.
According to police, Waiki was hiding under a blanket in the very back of the vehicle and when the sergeant opened the back lift gate, the suspect “emerged from under the blanket and shot the officer.”
That sergeant, whom police have not identified other than that he is a 12-year veteran of the department, was medevaced to Hilo Medical Center with gunshot wounds to his chest and arm. He was last reported to be in stable condition.
Police say Pagan-Torres was driving the vehicle, which was registered to the parents of Ferreira. Ferreira, Lajala and a third woman, who suffered a gunshot wound to the leg and a broken femur and has not yet been identified, were passengers within the vehicle.
The firearm used by Waiki on Friday was identified as a .38 revolver that was reported stolen from a residence in March, according to police.
On Sunday, police said that detectives had executed a search warrant on the SUV and reportedly located “numerous rounds of unspent ammunition,” 0.9 grams of a black tar-like substance suspected to be heroin, 0.1 grams of a crystalline substance suspected to be methamphetamine, and approximately $620.
The manhunt for Waiki started Tuesday evening at 9:47 p.m. after police say he fatally shot Kaliloa beside Highway 11 in Mountain View when the officer approached a vehicle during a traffic stop. Waiki, whose last known address was in Las Vegas, was being sought at the time on a no-bail warrant for revocation of his bail conditions.