Victims ripped off
by more than $100K,
police sayMore people claim to have
fallen prey to an air ticket scam
Honolulu police estimate more than $100,000 in losses to victims of an alleged airline ticket scam, but investigators say they are still gathering evidence and that the total could rise.
CORRECTION
Wednesday, April 14, 2003>> Honolulu Police District 7 covers the area from Punahou Street to Hawaii Kai, excluding Waikiki. A Page A3 story in yesterday's early edition incorrectly said the district covered Windward Oahu.
The Honolulu Star-Bulletin strives to make its news report fair and accurate. If you have a question or comment about news coverage, call Editor Frank Bridgewater at 529-4791 or email him at fbridgewater@starbulletin.com.
White-collar crime investigators said they do not know how many victims there are because more people come forward every day. They said preliminary figures indicate that the victims' losses could be more than $100,000.
Wayne Abe: The 55-year-old is identified by consumers as the suspect in the ticket scam
"Just from D-7 (Police District 7, Windward Oahu) there's about $80,000 worth of cases," said Lt. Sharon Dolan, of HPD's White Collar Crime Unit. "It seems like there's a lot of victims involved ... and it seems like each person lost more than $1,000."
Although police have not officially released the name of the suspect, they released a CrimeStoppers alert yesterday for 55-year-old Wayne T. Abe, who is wanted in a similar case. Abe was indicted by an Oahu grand jury last December for allegedly selling Hawaiian Airlines air fares to victims but then failing to come through with their tickets.
A $35,000 arrest warrant was issued for Abe, but police and state sheriffs have been unable to locate him. The indictment states that Abe was charged with theft for a case that took place in September 2001.
The recent reports to police also involve victims purchasing round-trip e-tickets on Hawaiian Airlines to the West Coast for $250 each. Victims usually bought blocks of five tickets because the sixth fare was offered free, police said. Payment was required in cash upfront.
"The cases are similar ... however, we had not established that this is the same individual," said CrimeStoppers Detective Letha DeCaires.
Consumers identified the suspect last week as Wayne Abe, of Honolulu. Officials from Prestige Travel Unlimited Inc., for which Abe was said to have been working, said Abe was not an employee, but a customer who had been making ticket purchases at retail prices from the company for about two years.
Hawaiian Airlines officials put out a news release Thursday alerting consumers about the scam and identified the suspect as "Wayne" or "Dwayne." The day after the news release, Hawaiian received about 50 phone calls from people who said they had fallen for the scam.
"A large number of those were investigated and found to be cases of fraud where false ticket numbers were involved," said Hawaiian Airlines spokesman Keoni Wagner. "I received a phone call from HPD earlier. ... We'll be working closely with them to make sure they have the same info that we have."
Abe is described as 5 feet tall, about 130 pounds, with salt-and-pepper hair, brown eyes and a mustache. Police said he is known to frequent East Honolulu.
Anyone with information about Abe's whereabouts is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 955-8300 or by dialing *CRIME on a cellular phone.
Honolulu Police Department Crimestoppers
