Murder suspect driven
by greed, jurors told

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By Rod Thompson
Big Island correspondent

HILO >> Alleged drug trafficker Jason Santos killed fellow drug trafficker Vernon Souza Jr. in 1994 for his money, Big Island Deputy Prosecutor Jack Matsukawa told a jury.

Santos made statements to friends that support that conclusion, Matsukawa said.

Defense attorney Harry Eliason countered that a friend of Santos, Oliver White, killed Souza. "Jason Santos did not participate in the death of Vernon Souza," Eliason told jurors.

Just a month ago, under the "suggestion" of a prosecution investigator, a witness changed her testimony "dramatically" to support the idea that Santos is the killer, Eliason said.

Jurors heard the conflicting views yesterday in opening statements of Santos' murder trial.

Santos and White were returned to Hawaii last year from the mainland, both indicted for the murder.

But in February, Judge Riki May Amano ruled that White is not mentally competent to stand trial, due to a head injury in a 1995 car accident.

In their statements to jurors, neither Matsukawa nor Eliason mentioned White's mental status.

The two suspects and the victim were all active in rodeos and ranching.

The body of Souza, a Kauai resident, was found off Saddle Road on Sept. 30, 1994. He had head injuries, a cut throat, and his body was partially burned.

The motive was greed, Matsukawa said. Souza's money, his drugs, his rodeo championship belt buckle, even his shoes were stolen.

Before the murder, Santos told his girlfriend he was going to take someone's money and drugs, Matsukawa said. After the murder he told her, "It's done."

Angry at her later, he said, "I can get rid of you like I got rid of that guy."

Defense attorney Eliason tried to cast doubt on those statements. He said police, sworn to uphold the law, prepared a sound case against White.

But in May, a witness was requestioned by a prosecution investigator who is not a sworn officer, Eliason said.

The witness was "subject to suggestion," he said. "Testimonies changed dramatically."

He made no response to another statement from Matsukawa, that Santos was seen burning bloody clothing containing a wallet which held a photo of victim Souza.