Owners can claim stolen lawn statuary
By Brandon Masuoka
Advertiser Staff Writer
About $100,000 worth of East Honolulu lawn ornaments recovered after a series of thefts will be on display Sunday at the main police station so the owners can claim their property.
Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser
Police have arrested a suspect in the thefts and have recovered about 500 ornaments, including bronze Buddhas and stone lions, stolen from yards in the Nu'uanu, Manoa, Diamond Head and Kahala areas.
A bronze statue valued at $10,000 waits at the Honolulu Police Department for its owner to claim it from among $500,000 worth of other stolen lawn ornaments recovered during an investigation that resulted in the arrest of a suspect. People who lost such statuary in recent thefts can view recovered items Sunday at police headquarters.
Police said the thefts started Aug. 1. Investigators have identified more than 20 homes where lawn items were stolen since then.
"I believe this is the biggest recovery of lawn ornaments and statues we've ever had," said Lt. Sherman Chan of the East Honolulu theft zone detail. "In term of tonnage, this is the largest."
Police charged David Lorimer, whom they accused of stealing hundreds of ornaments and selling them to a 41-year-old Hawai'i Kai man. The Hawai'i Kai collector was arrested on suspicion of detaining stolen property and released pending further investigation.
Lorimer was charged with second-degree theft last month and bail was set at $15,000, police said. Additional arrests could be coming.
Police said Lorimer prowled nightly and targeted anything loose and valuable in people's yards. They said some of the stolen items were worth more than $1,000.
"He would jump fences of people's yards, walk around, see something he liked, and carry it off," Chan said. "Some of the ornaments were heavy, so he must have had help."
Chan said police executed a search warrant Friday on the Hawai'i Kai man's home at 259 Hakalau Place and recovered more than 100 pieces. Another investigation led officers to an Iwilei storage locker where they recovered several hundred more ornaments Tuesday, police said.
Lead detective Howard Ishida said the recovered items can be viewed by anyone whose lawn ornaments were stolen recently. The display will be at police headquarters on Beretania Street from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday.
Visitors to the station are required to have a photo identification card to enter the building. Owners of stolen items are asked to bring the police report number and photos of their stolen items.
If no one claims the items, they will be auctioned.
"This was wonderful police work," said Detective Letha DeCaires, the Crime-
Stoppers coordinator. "The officers didn't stop at just one recovery. They went on to solve many more cases."
