Water main break cancels classes at Iolani
An 8-inch water main break on Kamoku Street canceled classes at Iolani School today and affected services to homes and apartment buildings in the area.The Board of Water Supply expected partial service to be restored to the school and nearby apartments shortly after noon. The break occurred near Date Street and Kapiolani Boulevard.
After school activities were to continue as scheduled. Classes were expected to resume at the private school tomorrow.
Florida woman pleads guilty in lottery scam
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. >> A Deerfield Beach woman has pleaded guilty in a scheme that promised seniors, including at least one in Hawaii, a lottery prize if they sent a few upfront payments.Nicole Rollins, 24, would solicit victims nationwide by phone and tell them she was from the "Millionaire's Club," according to a complaint filed by a U.S. Treasury agent.
The victims were told they had won the lottery and only needed to send a few payments to collect their $1.8 million prize.
Rollins pleaded guilty Tuesday to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. She faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine when sentenced in January.
A woman in Hawaii sent more than $200,000, and a Rhode Island woman lost $36,000. The woman in Honolulu told investigators she had been sending money for five years. In June, Rollins sent her three stolen checks totaling $76,980 to convince the woman she was legitimate, the indictment said.
HECO and Verizon plan to finish storm repairs
Workers with Hawaiian Electric Co. and Verizon hope to have the last few isolated cases of power and telephone failures caused by Tuesday's storm on Oahu fixed today.HECO spokesman Fred Kobashikawa said yesterday that the "backlog of work" consisted of connections to fewer than 50 individual residences.
Yesterday, he said, there were no distribution lines down, and remaining problems were with "intermittent or partial service" because of wind damage to above-ground lines or water effects on underground service.
One such incident may have taken place last night on the North Shore, affecting about 4,400 customers from Waialua to Kuilima. The power outage happened at about 6:13 p.m., and Kobashikawa said workers were able to re-energize the system by 6:25 p.m.
Verizon spokeswoman Ann Nishida said the 1,800 lines affected in the Koko Head area were out of service from about 6:30 a.m. Tuesday to 6:30 a.m. yesterday. The company had to pump water out of a drenched cable vault, she said.
>> Robert Kane is the retired Honolulu Police Department assistant chief working on the new traffic camera system. A report on Page A3 of yesterday's early editions incorrectly referred to him as Robert Dare. Corrections and clarifications
>> The four candidates for Honolulu mayor who participated in a forum Tuesday are against city condemnation of five Waikiki parcels to help Outrigger Hotels & Resorts' Lewers Street redevelopment project. A headline on a Page A3 article yesterday incorrectly said they oppose Waikiki hotel redevelopment.
The Honolulu Star-Bulletin strives to make its news report fair and accurate. If you have a question or comment about news coverage, call Managing Editor Frank Bridgewater at 529-4791 or email him at fbridgewater@starbulletin.com.
Police, Fire, Courts
By Star-Bulletin staffHONOLULU Honolulu Police Department Crimestoppers
Sketch of knife-wielding robbery suspect released
CrimeStoppers has released a sketch of a robbery/kid-napping suspect who carjacked a 20-year-old male in September. The suspect is one of two men who jumped into the victim's car Sept. 30 while it was stopped at a traffic light at the corner of Ala Moana and Keawe Street.
Police said after the victim ordered them out of the car, the suspect in the front seat pulled out a butterfly knife, demanded money and jewelry and ordered the victim to drive. The suspects told the victim to pull over near the Zippy's on Vineyard Boulevard, where they got out of the car, police said.
The sketch is of the suspect who had the knife. He is described as in his early 20s, 5 feet 8 inches, 140 pounds, with a slim build, blond hair, a goatee and a fair complexion. He is also described as having tattoos and was last seen wearing a black-and-white plaid shirt and jeans and had a blue-handled butterfly knife.
The second suspect is described as in his late 40s, 5 feet 8 inches, 160 pounds, medium build, with brown hair and a beard. He was last seen wearing a red plaid long-sleeved shirt.
Anyone with information is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 955-8300.
LEEWARD OAHU
Waipahu robbery said to be latest in crime spree
Honolulu police believe that bandana-wearing suspects may have been involved in four separate robberies and an auto theft/stolen pet case this month. The latest incident was a robbery yesterday at Highway Supermarket on Waipahu Street.Police said the suspect approached a female cashier with a handgun pointed at her. After the employee fled to the back of the store, police said, the suspect took the entire cash register, then ran outside to a four-door white vehicle where a driver was waiting. Both suspects fled the scene, and the cash register was later recovered a few blocks away.
Police believe they are the same suspects who robbed Rosie's Restaurant and tried to rob Regalo's Bakery in Waipahu Nov. 20. Police also said the suspect who robbed Rosie's was seen leaving in a van stolen in Kaneohe the same night. The owner had left his dog in the van while he went to the gym.
Police believe the animal is dead after several callers said they spotted the body of a similar dog in the Kaneohe area Nov. 22. Neither the van, license number JDT 113, nor the dog have been recovered.
Police said another robbery Nov. 17 at 719 Kamehameha Highway involved a man with a bandana holding a black handgun.
Witnesses described one suspect as a man in his late 20s, 5 feet 4 inches, chubby, about 160 pounds, with a tan complexion. The second suspect is described as a 25-year-old male, 5 feet 2 inches tall, about 130 pounds, with dark hair and brown eyes.
Police believe the suspects may be using stolen vehicles in the robberies.
Anyone with information on any of these cases is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 955-8300 or *CRIME on a cellular phone.
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Maui police seek link between 2 robberies
WAILUKU >> Maui police detectives are investigating whether two robberies on Tuesday were committed by the same man using a hooded sweater as a mask, said acting Lt. Michael Kahoohanohano.A man entered First Hawaiian Bank at Lipoa Street in Kihei a little after 3 p.m. and told a teller he had a gun, police said. He fled on foot toward Lipoa Street.
Police said the man was described as 5 feet 6 inches, about 120 to 130 pounds.
Kahoohanohano said the second robbery occurred between 7:35 and 7:40 p.m. at the Foodland Super Market in Kahului.
Kahoohanohano said the man was described as 6 feet in height and weighing 160 to 170 pounds.
