Newswatch
Police, Fire, Courts
By Star-Bulletin Staff
Bamboo Ridge 25th Birthday Bash
Local publishing house Bamboo Ridge celebrates its 25th birthday from 1-4 p.m. today at the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaii at 2454 S. Beretania St., $25 at the door, kids under 12 free. Includes Big Bumboocha plate lunch, door prizes, book and collectibles sale, and silent auction.
Police, Fire, Courts
By Star-Bulletin staffWINDWARD OAHU
Mililani man dies while fishing in Laie
A 49-year-old Mililani man apparently drowned yesterday while spear-fishing off Bathtub Beach Park in Laie, police reported.Bystanders had pulled the man from the ocean and begun CPR when firefighters from the Hauula station responded to the 12:16 p.m. call, a Honolulu Fire Department spokesman said.
Firefighters continued CPR until an ambulance crew took over and transported the man to Kahuku Hospital in critical condition.
Police identified the victim as Alan Shinsato and said he had gone diving about 9 a.m. His daughter found him floating lifeless in the ocean at noon, police said.
HONOLULU
Waipahu boy critical after 1-car accident
A 17-year-old Waipahu boy is in critical condition at the Queen's Medical Center after a single-car accident early yesterday morning, police said.The victim was the front-seat passenger in a two-door maroon 1993 Honda that was speeding south on Likelike Highway at 12:55 a.m. yesterday, according to police.
Just north of Gulick Avenue, the car hit the right-side guardrail, spun around and hit the curb on the left side of the road, then veered back to the right side of the road and crashed into a large metal utility pole, police said.
The 17-year-old driver and two other occupants of the car, ages 17 and 26, were treated at the scene and transported to a hospital.
Police said excessive speed was a factor in the wreck. Whether alcohol or drugs were factors is under investigation. Charges of negligent injury could be made against the driver depending on the outcome of the investigation.
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Man faces charges for animal cruelty
A Kauai man faces five counts of cruelty and five counts of animal desertion after apparently leaving five dogs unattended in a Pakala Camp house for several weeks.The Kauai Humane Society issued citations to Aluina Kanahele on Thursday, a day after it removed sick and emaciated dogs from a Makaweli house where the man reportedly had been living, said Becky Rhoades, veterinarian and society director.
Pakala Camp owner Bruce Robinson called the Humane Society after hearing from workers that the dogs were tied outside Kanahele's former residence without food or water, Rhoades said.
Humane Society workers found a "horrific" scene with dogs hungry, sick and unable to get away from their own feces, Rhoades said. A brown Airedale, a Labrador mix and a German shepherd mix were all thin and had skin lesions, while a pit bull and a Rottweiler were emaciated, she said.
All the dogs have received baths, antibiotics and worming, and are being fed and tended to, Rhoades said. They may become available for adoption after they recuperate, she said.
Neighbors told Humane Society workers that it had been at least one week and as many as three weeks since Kanahele had been to the house, Rhoades said.
If convicted, Kanahele could face up to a $2,000 fine and/or a year in jail for each cruelty charge and up to $1,000 fine and/or 30 days in jail for each animal-desertion charge, Rhoades said.
WAIKIKI
Suspect arrested in skateboard assaults
Police arrested an 18-year-old man who allegedly stole another 18-year-old man's skateboard and used it to strike two other teenagers in the face and head in Waikiki Friday night.The suspect approached the theft victim on the beach behind Royal Hawaiian Village around 10:15 p.m. and asked to see his skateboard. The suspect brandished the skateboard up as a weapon and demanded money, then ran away toward Kalakaua Avenue with the victim's money, CDs and skateboard, police reported.
As he fled, the suspect ran into two male teenagers and smashed a 17-year-old in the face and hit an 18-year-old in the head with the skateboard, police said.
Officers caught the suspect a block away from the scene and arrested him for first-degree robbery and two counts of second-degree assault.
The victims were treated and released from Queen's Medical Center.
Honolulu Police Department Crimestoppers
