Newswatch
Police, Fire, Courts
Star-Bulletin staff and wire
Inquiry sought into Ehime Maru collision
TOKYO >> Families of two people killed when a Japanese fishing boat was hit and sunk by a U.S. Navy submarine off Oahu in 2001 have asked U.S. transportation authorities to investigate the collision, a lawyer said today.Nine of the 35 Japanese high school students, teachers and crew aboard the Ehime Maru died when the USS Greeneville rammed the training vessel on Feb. 9, 2001. The accident sparked outrage in Japan and families of the victims later agreed to a compensation settlement with the U.S. Navy.
Yesterday, the victims' families sent a letter requesting that the National Transportation Safety Board scrutinize the role of the Pentagon's program of allowing civilians on military equipment, said Makoto Toyoda, a lawyer representing the families.
The Greeneville was demonstrating a surfacing drill for 16 civilian guests. The Navy later said the rapid-ascent was done for the civilians' benefit. Three of them were seated at the sub's controls when the accident occurred.
Hunter Thompson faces more leg surgery
Gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson is recovering, but faces further surgery after breaking his leg in a fall at his Waikiki hotel, interrupting his coverage of the Honolulu Marathon, according to his wife.Thompson, 66, came to Honolulu as an ESPN.com columnist with his wife, Anita, and movie star Josh Hartnett, who rode in the pace vehicle at Sunday's marathon.
Hartnett will co-star in "The Rum Diary," a movie version of Thompson's book based on his adventures as a journalist in Puerto Rico.
Thompson, who also contributes to Rolling Stone, fell early Friday morning when he slipped on the bathroom floor, Mrs. Thompson said. He was taken to Straub Hospital, where he spent a couple of days, she said.
"The first few days, he was in a lot of pain," she said.
The Thompsons were cutting short their Honolulu visit to return to their home in Aspen, Colo., where he will have surgery, Mrs. Thompson said.
Police, Fire, Courts
By Star-Bulletin staffHONOLULU
2 male suspects sought in robbery on Kapiolani
CrimeStoppers is asking for the public's help in locating two suspects who robbed a man on Kapiolani Boulevard earlier this week.
Police said that about 7 p.m. Monday, in the 1600 block of Kapiolani Boulevard, near Kaheka Street, two men stopped the 19-year-old male victim as he was walking out of a business and demanded money.
When the victim showed an empty wallet to the suspects, one of them took his jewelry.
The suspect who took the victim's jewelry is described as about 21 years old, 6 feet tall, with a slender build, slight facial acne, shaved dark hair, a light mustache and a goatee. He was seen wearing a black crew neck shirt and a stud earring in his right ear.
The second suspect is described as about 22 years old, between 5 feet 8 and 5 feet 10 inches tall, with a heavy build, curly black hair, facial scars, acne and protruding eyes. He was last seen wearing what might have been a Miami Dolphins hat and a jacket.
HPD Detective Shannon Kawakami requests that anyone with information contact him at 529-3057. Anonymous calls may be made to CrimeStoppers at 955-8300 or by calling *CRIME on a cellular phone.
Mo-ped driver critical after collision with car
A 68-year-old mo-ped driver was taken to the Queen's Medical Center in critical condition Monday night after he was struck by a car leaving a driveway, police said.Police said alcohol may have been a factor in the accident. The 63-year-old Honolulu man who was driving the car was arrested for operating a vehicle while under the influence of an intoxicant, police said.
Police said the car was leaving a driveway on the mauka side of Young Street just Ewa of Keeaumoku Street about 9 p.m. and collided with the Ewa-bound mo-ped.
The victim, who was not wearing a helmet, was thrown off the mo-ped and suffered head injuries, police said. The driver of the car was not injured.
LEEWARD OAHU
Man, 51, arrested for alleged threats
Police arrested a 51-year-old man Monday after he allegedly threatened to kill an acquaintance with a machete for getting spray paint on the shipping container he lives in.Police said that while a 38-year-old man was painting his car about 3:30 p.m., some of the paint landed on the container. Police said the suspect became upset and complained to the man several times. The suspect left, returned with a machete and repeatedly threatened to kill the painter, police said. The suspect was arrested for first-degree terroristic threatening.
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
House blaze causes $322,000 in damage
WAILUKU >> Trash fire embers caused a blaze that destroyed an unoccupied five-bedroom home in rural Kula yesterday, Assistant Fire Chief Alan Cordeiro said.The fire at 322 Kalawa Place, just below Kula Highway, caused about $322,000 in damage to the home and its contents, Cordeiro said.
He said firefighters took more than two hours to extinguish the blaze after receiving the alarm at 11:23 a.m. yesterday. Cordeiro said firefighters had difficulty putting out the blaze because the house was more than an eighth of a mile from the nearest hydrant.
He said a brother-in-law of the family who owned the house was burning trash and embers landed on the home's wooden shingle roof.
Police investigating Big Isle man's assault
Big Island police are looking for more information regarding the assault of a 61-year-old man last month in the Hawaiian Acres subdivision of Puna.On Nov. 24, Puna patrol officers found the victim, James Oliva of Mountain View, on Road 6 in the subdivision. Oliva had numerous head and body injuries. Police found remnants of nylon twine tied around his wrists and legs that had apparently been used to bind him.
Oliva was taken to the Hilo Medical Center and then flown to the Queen's Medical Center, where he was confined in critical condition. He was later transferred to the Rehabilitation Hospital of the Pacific in Honolulu, where he is reported in stable condition.
Anyone with information about the assault is asked to call Detective Richard Sherlock of the East Hawaii Criminal Investigation Section at 961-2379 or the police nonemergency number at 935-3311. Those who wish to remain anonymous may call CrimeStoppers at 961-8300 in Hilo or 329-8181 in Kona.
Bank shuts down after threat of explosives
Hilo police arrested a 52-year-old man yesterday after he allegedly told bank employees there were explosives in his safety deposit box set to go off.The suspect was arrested on Kilauea Avenue about four hours later at the American Savings Bank on Pauahi Street.
Police said that before 8:30 a.m., the suspect walked into the bank and told employees there were explosives set to detonate in his safety deposit box. Police said the suspect did not demand money and left the bank on foot in an unknown direction.
After he left, employees shut down the bank and called police. Police and bank employees then contacted a locksmith to open the suspect's safety deposit box. Authorities found no explosives inside.
The bank was closed for the rest of the day. The suspect was arrested at 12:45 p.m. for terroristic threatening and is being held at the Hilo cellblock pending charges.
Honolulu Police Department Crimestoppers
