|
Newswatch
Star-Bulletin staff and wire service
|
Bones found at Volcanoes Park
HILO » Human bones were found in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on Monday, and the site is being treated as a crime scene, the park announced.
"The area is secured and we're treating this as a crime scene until determined otherwise," said ranger John Broward. This is standard operating procedure, a park spokeswoman said.
"An FBI Evidence Response Team with military support is assisting in the investigation," the park said.
A group of biological researchers discovered the bones Monday morning in an area off the upper portion of Chain of Craters Road, a road which starts near Kilauea Caldera and extends downhill to the park shoreline.
The bones were found in a kipuka, an area of vegetation surrounded by lava flows.
The FBI team is highly trained, but analysis of remains such as this can still be time-consuming, the park said.
"The ideal outcome of this is that eventually the person's age, sex, length of time deceased, and cause of death will be determined and their identification confirmed," the park said.
Seed firm broke pesticide rules
Syngenta Seeds Inc. will pay $17,550 in fines in a settlement with the Environmental Protection Agency for violating federal pesticide regulations in Kekaha, Kauai.
The settlement was part of a broader, national action against Syngenta Crop Protection Inc., and Syngenta Seeds Inc., that resulted in $284,000 in civil penalties altogether, the EPA announced yesterday.
In the Kauai case, Syngenta Seeds did not adequately post notification that it was spraying the pesticide Liberty, and failed to store personal protective equipment separately from clothing and pesticide-contaminated areas, according to the EPA. The EPA also alleged the company did not have proper authorization for a shipment of corn from Puerto Rico for experimental use.
The other complaints were against Syngenta Crop Protection Inc., for alleged violations involving two products, including advertising a herbicide without noting it was a restricted-use pesticide.
Funds sought for Guard families
The Coast Guard Foundation has established an emergency Family Disaster Relief Fund to help the families of the crew of the rescue helicopter that crashed in the ocean off Honolulu last week.
"This incident serves as a heartbreaking reminder of the dangers these heroes face every day and why the foundation is dedicated to serve and support them and their families," said Anne Brengle, president of the nonprofit foundation.
Killed in the crash were Lt. Cmdr. Andrew Wischmeier, 44, of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.; Petty Officer 1st Class David Skimin, 38, of San Bernardino, Calif.; and Petty Officer 2nd Class Joshua Nichols, 27, of Gloucester, Va. The pilot, Cmdr. Thomas Nelson, 42, of Staten Island, N.Y., was not found.
All four were married with children, and the foundation is asking the public to contribute to the fund to give emergency help to their families. To donate, visit the foundation's Web site at www.cgfdn.org, call the foundation at (860) 535-0786 or fax a note to (860) 535-0944 with donation information and a reference to the Family Disaster Relief Fund. Donations are tax deductible.
Seminar on diabetes scheduled
A seminar will be held at 10 a.m. tomorrow at Kokua Kalihi Valley Elderly Services to help seniors, caregivers and professionals understand risk factors for diabetes and hypertension and how to manage them.
"Connect the Dots: Diabetes and Your Heart - How Medicare Helps" is an educational campaign of the National Council on Aging.
|
Police, Fire, Courts
Star-Bulletin staff
|
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Woman arrested after boyfriend hurt
Police arrested a 54-year-old Hawaiian Ocean View Estates woman for investigation of negligent injury after her boyfriend was hospitalized Sunday from injuries caused by a sport utility vehicle driven by the woman.
Early Sunday morning, Kau police responded to a report of a motor vehicle-pedestrian crash on Koa Lane. Police said the 55-year-old Kau man had extensive injuries to the right side of his body.
The crash followed a domestic argument with the driver, police said.
The victim was taken to the Queen's Medical Center on Oahu in critical but stable condition.
The girlfriend was taken to the Kona police cellblock and then released pending further investigation.
Big Island home destroyed by blaze
Fire destroyed a home in Hawaiian Ocean View Estates on the southern end of the Big Island on Monday night.
Fire crews were called to a home on Kailua Boulevard between Orchid Parkway and Lehua Lane about 7:26 p.m. They found a 20-by-30-foot home fully engulfed in flames and the home collapsed, according to a Hawaii County Fire Department news release.
There was no damage estimate and the cause of the fire was under investigation.
HONOLULU
2 men charged in Salt Lake robbery
Police charged two men who allegedly robbed a man Thursday while he was walking on Salt Lake Boulevard at Namur Road.
Jeremy Leclair and Joshua M. Cypriano were charged with first-degree robbery.
Police said in an affidavit that about 7:50 p.m., Leclair was holding a large knife and made stabbing motions toward the victim, saying, "Give me your stuff." When he refused, Cypriano allegedly punched the man in the face. When he refused again, Cypriano allegedly hit him several more times.
The victim threw his backpack toward the men so they would stop hitting him and ran on Salt Lake Boulevard, police said.
The victim dropped his work cell phone while being chased, and used his personal phone to call 911. Cypriano tried to chase him down, but did not catch him, police said. Leclair ran in the opposite direction, police said.
One of the suspects got into a waiting car and fled.
Police got the description and license plate number of the car and were later able to track down the car and the knife, which eventually led them to Cypriano and Leclair, according to the affidavit.
LEEWARD OAHU
Driver of stolen car racks up violations
Police arrested a 45-year-old woman who was allegedly speeding in a stolen car on the freeway.
Police said an officer stopped the woman for speeding just after 2 a.m. Sunday on the H-1 freeway near Waipahu. When the officer asked the woman for her driver's license, she gave him a state identification card instead, police said.
The officer noticed that the car the woman was driving had only paper plates, so he wrote down the vehicle identification number and went back to his police car to check the number via his onboard computer. The woman then sped away, police said. The officer gave chase and learned that the car the woman was driving had been reported stolen on July 19.
The woman later stopped and the officer arrested her for investigation of auto theft, driving without a license and contempt.
She was also cited for speeding. The officer then searched the car and found evidence of drugs, police said. The woman was then arrested for investigation of several drug violations. She was released later pending investigation.