Kalihi murder
suspect also indicted
on firearms charge

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By Debra Barayuga
dbarayuga@starbulletin.com

Christopher Clayburn Aki, charged with the murder of his girlfriend's 11-year-old half sister in December, has been indicted on an unrelated firearms charge stemming from an August 2001 incident.

Aki, 20, of Kalihi is expected to be arraigned Monday in Circuit Court on a charge of carrying or possessing a loaded or unloaded firearm without a permit and failing to confine it as required by law. Under state law a person can only keep a registered firearm in an enclosed container in certain places, including one's home or business, to and from a target range, organized gun show, repair shop or licensed gun dealer.

Bail has been set at $75,000.

Deputy public defender Todd Eddins said he was not aware of specific details of the charge and had not yet seen the indictment. He had heard from other sources that Aki may have been arrested in 2001 for auto theft after he was found sitting in the passenger seat of a stolen car with other individuals and that a gun allegedly was later discovered under Aki's seat.

"Resurrecting a meager noncase will not compel Chris to reveal the reality surrounding Kahealani's death," Eddins said yesterday. "The only thing that's changed in the years the case lay dormant is Chris' presence at a homicide."

Eddins' statement is the first acknowledgment by the defense of Aki's involvement in the death of Kahealani Indreginal. When asked to clarify whether he was saying Aki was responsible for Indreginal's death, Eddins declined further comment.

Indreginal's body was found near an Aiea trail Dec. 13, three days after she disappeared from the Makalapa housing complex where she lived. Witnesses reported seeing her with Aki before she disappeared.

Aki was charged with second-degree murder after he admitted to killing Kahealani and took responsibility for her death, according to police. He pleaded not guilty to the charge in December and is being held pending trial in lieu of $5 million bail.

The firearms charge is a Class B felony, punishable by a maximum 10 years' imprisonment.