A CHALLENGING VISIT TO NEW ZEALAND
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COURTESY PHOTO
A delegation from the University of Hawaii is in New Zealand this week to sign two agreements with Victoria University of Wellington that will extend educational collaboration between the two schools. Led by UH President Evan Dobelle, center, holding a fern frond, the Hawaii delegation received a traditional Maori challenge upon entering the Victoria University grounds yesterday. One of the agreements to be signed will establish joint degrees in conservation biology; the other will facilitate student exchanges.
>> University of Hawaii researcher John Hu is conducting genetic engineering studies on banana bunchy top virus. A story on page A20 Sunday incorrectly identified the disease he is researching. Corrections and clarifications
>> The contact number for the Windward Ahupua'a Alliance is 263-6001. A Newswatch item on page A3 Monday had an incorrect number.
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 Police Department Crimestoppers
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Police investigate theft of construction tools
Big Island police are seeking the public's help in solving the theft of construction materials from a storage container beside Hawaii Belt Road near the 10-mile marker by Pepeekeo.Police said that sometime early yesterday morning a thief or thieves broke into the Hawaiian Dredging Construction Co. container and stole two Honda generators, a Skill saw and a handheld grinder. The value of the stolen items was estimated at $4,890.
Police said construction crews recovered two gas cans, two gas cutoff saws, an air drill, a hand drill, a band saw, a rotor hammer and a water cooler that had been taken from the container and left in the underbrush outside.
Anyone with information about the theft or the identity of the thieves is asked to call officer Peter Fernandez of the South Hilo Patrol at 961-2311 or the police nonemergency number at 935-3311. Those who wish to remain anonymous may call Crime Stoppers at 961-8300 in Hilo or 329-8181 in Kona.
Gas compressor, trailer stolen from airstrip
Big Island police said a gas compressor and trailer were stolen from Goodale Airstrip in Kau last month.Police said both items were stolen sometime between Jan. 17 and Jan. 20 from the airstrip, which is located about a mile outside Pahala in a macadamia nut orchard. The compressor is described as a 1997 Q Series 125 Grimmer Schmidt model with blue housing and a white cover.
The compressor can also be identified by its serial number 125-14580 and runs on a Ford 302-V8 engine, No. 05561. Both the compressor, trailer and tow hitch are valued at $14,000.
Anyone with information about the theft or the whereabouts of the stolen compressor is asked to call officer Hayden Akamu of the Kau Patrol at 939-2520 or the police nonemergency number at 935-3311.
Those who wish to remain anonymous may call Crime Stoppers at 961-8300 in Hilo or 329-8181 in Kona.
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The Courts
2 men sentenced in Waianae beating death
Two men were sentenced yesterday for their roles in the beating death of 35-year-old William Van Winkle of Waianae in July 2001.Branden Adkins, 20, who pleaded guilty as charged to second-degree murder in September, received life with the possibility of parole.
Co-defendant Calvin Dole, 20, also pleaded guilty in September to a reduced charge of second-degree assault and was sentenced to four years as a youthful offender.
According to police, Adkins and Dole were among eight males who confronted Van Winkle at the Waianae District Park and took turns beating and kicking him.
Van Winkle died of blunt head trauma and a broken neck. His body was discovered naked from the waist down on the basketball courts.
A third defendant, Victor Faagau, a 15-year-old charged as an adult, elected to go to trial and was convicted in December of manslaughter, punishable by up to 20 years in prison. He will be sentenced April 22.
Cases against three other teens in the group were adjudicated in Family Court, where the results of cases are not made public.
Man admits to robbing Kalihi Bank of Hawaii
A Kalihi man waived his rights and confessed to police that he robbed the Kalihi Bank of Hawaii on Monday of $1,001, according to an affidavit.Roddy Masao Tanaka was charged in a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court yesterday. According to an affidavit, he entered the bank about 2:15 p.m. and handed a teller a note that read, "I have a gun. I will shoot you. Just give me all your 100 - 50 -20 and hurry up. Make it snape (sic)."
A customer took down the license plate number of the car that Tanaka drove off in. A police officer checking the Kalihi address of the car's registered owner spotted a man fitting the description of the suspected robber washing the getaway car in the parking lot.
Police said they recovered about $850 of the stolen money at his residence.
