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Newswatch
Star-Bulletin staff and wire service
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Second man charged in robbery
An Oahu grand jury returned an indictment yesterday charging the second of four suspects in the March 7 home invasion robbery at former Honolulu City Councilman Toraki Matsumoto's home.
Keo Aiwohi, 29, is charged with first-degree burglary and second-degree robbery. He was already in custody and was scheduled to appear in Honolulu District Court for a preliminary hearing later this week.
A grand jury had already charged Matthew M. Ako III with first-degree burglary, second-degree robbery and driving a stolen car. Prosecutors also charged Sun Kai Pangorang and Roxanne Garcia with first-degree burglary Monday.
Oahu barber ordered deported
A U.S. immigration judge ordered longtime Ala Moana Center barber Ayato "John" Endo deported yesterday.
Endo's attorney Gary Singh said he will appeal Judge Dayna Beamer's order to the Board of Immigration Appeals in Virginia. And because of a backlog of cases, the appeal could take up to 1 1/2 years, he said.
Endo, 62, remains free on $15,000 bond. He is also serving a one-year term of supervised release for a federal court conviction for impersonating a citizen of the United States.
He pleaded guilty to the charge last November. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials discovered Endo lied about his citizenship when he registered as a sex offender with the state in 2006.
U.S. District Judge Helen Gillmor sentenced him earlier this month to the supervised release and the 54 days he had already spent in custody before he posted bond.
Endo pleaded no contest and was convicted in state court in 1984 of first-degree sexual abuse of a 6-year-old girl. He was sentenced to five years probation and eight consecutive weekends in jail.
Last September, he sought to withdraw his 1984 no-contest plea. Earlier this month, Circuit Judge Michael Town denied his request.
Endo is a citizen of Japan but has been a permanent resident alien since 1971. He has been cutting hair at Thom's Barber Shop for more than 30 years.
Thai police report isle man killed
BANGKOK » Police in Thailand said a Hawaii man died after an Australian man allegedly shot him during a quarrel.
Capt. Somsak Phanthong said 46-year-old Gary Poretsky was shot three times by 65-year-old William Douglas during an argument inside a restaurant in the northern city of Chiang Mai on Saturday morning.
Witnesses told police both men appeared drunk.
Phanthong said Poretsky suffered gunshots to his face and chest.
According to police, Douglas admitted to the slaying and is being held on charges of murder.
Chiang Mai is located about 350 miles north of Bangkok, the Thai capital.
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Police, Fire, Courts
Star-Bulletin staff
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HONOLULU
Rescuers help 3 off mountain trail
Rescue crews walked a family of three, including a pregnant woman, off a mountain trail at about 4 a.m. yesterday, 10 hours after the hikers called for help.
The distress call came in at 6 p.m. Monday. A man said that he, a pregnant woman and her 5-year-old son were lost and could not return to their starting point on Waahila Ridge above St. Louis Heights.
At 9 p.m., a rescue team used a global positioning system to find their location through the man's cell phone. After about 2 1/2 hours, the crew reached the family. The hike back took about 4 1/2 hours as the crew gave the family time to rest and eat.
"All three were fine," said fire spokesman Capt. Earle Kealoha. "A little tired, a little hungry and a little muddy, but fine. It was a routine rescue."
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Collision with truck kills Big Isle driver
A 59-year-old Hilo woman died yesterday after her 2005 sedan collided with a concrete truck on the Hawaii Belt Road near the 99-mile marker, Big Island police said.
The woman was traveling north about 7 a.m. when she crossed the center line and collided with the truck going south, Kona police said.
She was taken to the Kona Community Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 10:44 a.m.
The driver of the concrete truck, a 52-year-old Kau man, was not injured.
The victim was not wearing a seat belt.
Police believe that speed was a contributing factor in the crash.
This was the 10th traffic fatality on the Big Island this year compared with nine at this time last year.
Vandals damage Hilo courthouse
Big Island police are asking for the public's help in finding out who did an estimated $25,000 worth of damage to the new Hilo courthouse, which is still under construction.
The vandalism was discovered about 7:10 a.m. at 777 Kilauea Ave. Police found walls defaced with ink markers. The suspect or suspects also dumped carpet glue and sand throughout the building and threw white grease at three large-screen televisions.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to call officer Jo Aoki at 961-2200 or Crime Stoppers at 961-8300 in Hilo or 329-8181 in Kona.
LEEWARD OAHU
Crash of stolen car brings man's bust
Police arrested a 23-year-old man who allegedly crashed a stolen car while trying to evade police.
Police said that about 10:30 Monday night, a patrol officer in Aiea saw the suspect driving a vehicle erratically and followed him into the Sears parking lot at Pearlridge Center.
The officer approached the vehicle after learning that it had been reported stolen. Police said the driver sped off and crashed several blocks away on Kamehameha Highway.
Police found the suspect nearby and arrested him on suspicion of auto theft.