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Newswatch
Star-Bulletin staff and wire service
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Driver guilty of attempted murder
A cab driver who struck his passenger three times with his car following an argument over a $2 tip faces a mandatory life prison term with the possibility for parole when he is sentenced Sept. 3.
A Circuit Court jury found Guillermo Fernandez, 51, guilty of attempted murder yesterday.
Fernandez picked up Rodney Ryan Foth, 30, at the Ilikai Hotel June 29 last year and dropped him off at CompUSA on Ala Moana Boulevard. Foth gave Fernandez $10 for a $7 fare. When Fernandez gave him $1 change, Foth told Fernandez he wasn't giving him a tip and the two argued.
As Foth was walking away, Fernandez struck him three times with his cab then fled. Foth suffered scratches on his arms and a bruise to his spine.
Cab driver's assailant sentenced
A man who shot and tried to rob a cab driver in 2006 will have to serve at least half of his 30-year prison sentence before he is eligible for parole.
A state judge sentenced Gregory Kaahanui, 27, to the 30-year prison term for first-degree assault, robbery and two unrelated burglaries. Circuit Judge Karl Sakamoto imposed a mandatory minimum of 15 years because Kaahanui used a firearm in the commission of the robbery and attempted murder.
Driver Yu Kyo Kim, 53, wrestled the gun away after Kaahanui shot him July 28 outside the First Hawaiian Bank Pearlridge branch and demanded money. Kaahanui fled in Kim's taxivan and abandoned it on Likelike Highway.
Kaahanui left a ski mask and jacket stained with Kim's blood in the taxivan.
Kim was not able to identify his assailant. However, police were able to extract DNA from sweat on the jacket and mask and match it to blood samples Kaahanui left behind in an earlier burglary of a Kaneohe business.
Bank warns of phishing scam
Hawaii National Bank is warning the public that a "phishing scam" using the bank's name is being circulated and anyone who receives the fraudulent e-mail should not click onto any link in the message.
In a phishing scam, offenders send out thousands of fake, but authentic looking, e-mails to trick unsuspecting recipients into responding.
The bank does not e-mail customers to ask them to submit personal information. Recipients should never reveal account numbers, passwords, Social Security numbers and other personal information.
Hawaii National Bank said it is working with Internet security experts to shut down the fraudulent Web sites. Recipients of such e-mails can forward them to abuse.hnb@hnbhawaii.com or call (808) 528-7824.
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Police, Fire, Courts
Star-Bulletin staff
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NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Kihei woman dies after car hits her
KIHEI, Maui » A Maui resident died from injuries yesterday after being struck by a car on South Kihei Road.
Juanita Baloaloa, 66, of Kihei, was walking at 4:25 a.m. yesterday on South Kihei Road about 100 feet south of Nohokai Street when she was struck by a sedan, Maui traffic investigator Dawn Danley said.
The woman was taken to Maui Memorial Medical Center in critical condition and died about noon yesterday.
A preliminary investigation showed Baloaloa was walking south on the road on her way to work when she was struck by the vehicle traveling in the same direction, said police Lt. Robert Hill. He said there was no sidewalk on the makai side where she was walking.
Baloaloa was the second pedestrian killed in Maui County this year, compared with two for the same period last year.
Victim of stabbing on Kauai identified
KAPAA » Kauai police identified the victim in Thursday's stabbing at Fuji Beach.
Curtis Bupp II, 49, of Kapaa was stabbed in his lower abdomen Thursday and is in serious condition at Wilcox Hospital. The suspect, a 29-year-old man, also of Kapaa, was arrested for investigation of attempted murder. He' is also in Wilcox Hospital, in fair condition.
Police said others were arrested at the scene, but they were released pending further investigation.
Police ask that anyone with information about the altercation call Detective Joseph Adric at 241-1686 or CrimeStoppers at 241-1887.
HONOLULU
Girl alleges assault by man at school
A 30-year-old man allegedly sexually assaulted a 17-year-old girl at a Honolulu public school yesterday morning.
A police lieutenant with the Criminal Investigation Division would not reveal whether the suspect was an employee at the school or the name of the school. Police have opened a first-degree sexual assault case.
The man allegedly sexually assaulted the girl at 10:30 a.m. yesterday, but he fled before police arrived at the school, police said.
The girl reported the incident to police, and was later taken to the Sex Abuse Treatment Center for an examination, police said. No arrests have been made.
WINDWARD OAHU
Owner finds horse stabbed to death
The owner of a horse found it stabbed to death at 9 a.m. yesterday in Kahuku, police said.
The mare was kept in a pasture on the 56000-block of Kamehameha Highway and its owner last saw it alive at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.
The woman found blood on the gate and fence, and noticed stab wounds to the neck, police said. It appeared that someone called the horse over, held onto it and stabbed it, police said.
The owner suspects someone with whom she has argued recently, police said. No arrests have been made.