Pali shooting suspects
in protective custodyPolice said their lives
may be in danger
The three suspects in the Pali Golf Course shooting are being held in protective custody the Oahu Community Correctional Center.
Warden Francis Sequeira said the decision to house them separately from other inmates was made because their lives may be in danger.
Sequeira said police informed OCCC that the suspects may have received threats.
Kevin “Pancho”Gonsalves, Rodney Joseph Jr. and Ethan Motta were indicted by a Honolulu grand jury for first degree murder in the Jan. 7 shooting that killed Lepo Utu Taliese and Romelius “Lawrence” Corpuz and critically injured Tinoimalu Sao.
All three suspects are being held on $1 million cash bail.
The three men are being housed together, and the warden has received no request from the prosecutor’s office to have them separated.
The three inmates could request to be taken out of protective custody, but so far, neither they nor their defense lawyers have done so, Sequeira said.
In high-profile cases, inmates are first observed in a medical mental health living unit to make sure they are stable before they are placed in any long-term housing area, Sequeira said.
The three men were assessed as stable and placed in protective custody, separate from the general population.