Newswatch
Police, Fire, Courts
Star-Bulletin staff and wire
Welfare fraud suspect is arrested in Virginia
A former Honolulu resident wanted for alleged welfare fraud was arrested in Virginia, according to the Hawaii attorney general's office.In October 2002 an Oahu grand jury had indicted Natasha Ewing, 25, with one count each of first- and second-degree theft for allegedly obtaining welfare benefits between 1991 and 2001, according to a statement from Attorney General Mark Bennett. Ewing is also known as Natasha Charles, Natasha Gantt, Tosha Gantt, Natasha Rowbowa and Natasha Ogunlade, according to the statement.
She was arrested on Jan. 22 trying to enter the Norfolk Naval Station. Ewing will be returned to Hawaii to stand trial, according to the statement. She faces a total of up to 15 years in prison if convicted of the two charges.
$1.5M in federal grants to help isles' homeless
The state has received almost $1.5 million in federal grants to provide support services for homeless people.The grants to the Housing and Community Development Corporation of Hawaii are funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The Big Island's Official for Social Ministry will get $629,160 for a five-year grant that will fund 24 rental units for homeless residents with disabilities. About $624,100 will be divided among Steadfast Housing Corp., Catholic Charities Community and Immigration Services and the Maui Economic Concerns of the Community Inc.
The City & County of Honolulu was awarded more than $233,000 for housing programs for Oahu's homeless.
Forum will discuss environmental woes
The public is invited to a town meeting on "Environmental Health Concerns in Hawaii" from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. next Saturday in the Ala Moana Hotel's Hibiscus Ballroom.The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences is sponsoring the forum with the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine. Dr. Kenneth Olden, director of the national institute, will be key speaker, discussing "Bringing the Benefits of Environmental Health Research to the Public." Olden and other speakers will participate in group discussions on autism, volcanic air pollution and other topics.
The public is encouraged to attend, ask questions and express their concerns about Hawaii's environment and how it affects public health.
For more information, visit the Web site www.neurotoxicology.com.
[ TAKING NOTICE ]
>> Candy He, a sixth-grader at Kawananakoa Middle School, has won the Lions Club of Honolulu poster contest, the first step in winning the 16th annual Lions International Peace Poster Contest.
Second-place winner was Kuulei Akuna, a seventh-grader at Kawananakoa; third, Dianna Zane, an eighth-grader at Kawananakoa; and fourth, Douad Salameh, an eighth-grader at Central Middle School.
>> The state Office of Hawaiian Affairs' second annual Na'Oiwi'Olino Debate, Poster and Essay Contest was won single-handedly by Lindsey Doi, of Kamehameha Schools, whose partner was unable to attend. Other first-place winners throughout the state included:
English Essays: Louis Roseguo, Big Island, grades 4 to 5 division; Ulanaihouokahi-aloha Kalahiki-Anthony, Oahu, grades 6 to 8.
Hawaiian Essays: Anoalo Stanley, Oahu, grades 4 to 5.
Posters: Sariah Lopez, Kauai, kindergarten to first grade; Keala Lopez, Kauai, grades 2 to 3; Lauren Chow, Molokai, grades 4 to 5; Ku'ulei Bezilla, Big Island, grades 6 to 8; Jessica Svendsen, Kauai, grades 9 to 12.
Photo Essay: Chalice Chun-Gilliland, Maui, grades 4 to 5.
>> Dr. Krish Dubey, an instructor of management and industrial relations in the College of Business Administration at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, has been given a Fulbright Award to lecture at the National Institute of Industrial Engineering in Mumbai, India.
>> Dr. Harriet Natsuyama and Patsy K. Young have been inducted into the McKinley High School Hall of Honor.
Natsuyama, of the Class of 1955, is an expert in pure and applied math, computer science, physics and engineering; a world-renowned researcher; and a pioneer in computer problem-solving.
Young, formerly Patsy Miyahira, of the Class of 1947, served in the state House of Representatives and Senate during the 1970s and '80s.
>> Aloha Harvest, a nonprofit that works with food distributors to deliver donated food for the needy through social service agencies on Oahu, has received $10,000 from The Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Foundation Inc.
>> First Hawaiian Foundation, the charitable arm of First Hawaiian Bank, has concluded a three-year grant of $30,000 to the Korean Centennial Committee, which is celebrating the anniversary of Korean immigration to the United States.
>> The Mediation Center of the Pacific has received a $4,800 grant from the Rev. Takie Okumura Family Fund of the Hawaii Community Foundation to support the development of a parent-child media- tion program. The funds will be used to train adult and student mediators to address problems between parents and teens.
Police, Fire, Courts
By Star-Bulletin staffLEEWARD OAHU
Police arrested a 38-year-old Ewa Beach man Thursday for allegedly sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl. The incident took place on Jan. 24 and was disclosed later by the victim, police said.
14-year-old says man sexually assaulted herPolice arrested the suspect yesterday for investigation of third-degree sexual assault and later released him pending further investigation.
NORTH SHORE
Police arrested a 13-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl for burglarizing a Waialua home Thursday afternoon.
Boy and girl caught after alleged burglaryPolice responded to a home alarm and found an unlocked door and a cut screen about 1:27 p.m. Thursday.
A witness saw two teens run down a flight of stairs at the home toward the beach.
Other responding officers located the two, who were identified by the witness.
The boy and girl were arrested for first-degree burglary.
WINDWARD OAHU
Kamehameha Highway near Hauula was closed for nearly nine hours yesterday because of a water main break.
Water main break snarls traffic for hoursThe break occurred about 8:30 a.m., and traffic was diverted onto Kukuna and Hauula Homestead roads until about 5 p.m.
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Big Island police are looking for a man who allegedly hit a 16-year-old in the face during an attempted robbery Thursday night at a Kohala Coast hotel.
Police seeking man who allegedly hit teenThe incident occurred at 8:40 p.m. when police say a man walked up to the victim and demanded money. The suspect then allegedly hit the victim in the face when he was unable to get anything of value.
Police described the suspect as bald and clean-shaven, in his 20s or 30s and between 5 feet 11 inches and 6 feet tall. The suspect was wearing a white crew-neck T-shirt and board shorts. Police said he has a tattoo on his inner left forearm and was wearing earrings in both ears.
Anyone with information about the robbery attempt is asked to call officer Kenneth Quiocho of the South Kohala Patrol at 887-3080. Anonymous calls can be made to CrimeStoppers at 961-8300 in Hilo or 329-8181 in Kona.
Police arrest suspect in alleged sex assault
LIHUE >> A Kapaa man has been arrested following the alleged kidnapping and sexual assault of a female tourist from the mainland late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning.Kauai police gave few details of the case, saying only that the attack took place at the Old Marine Camp in Wailua.
The suspect is being held in lieu of $45,000 bail.
Honolulu Police Department Crimestoppers
