Kahala bank robbery suspects reject plea agreement

By David Waite
Advertiser Staff Writer

Two men accused of participating in the July 1999 armed takeover and robbery of the Kahala branch of American Savings Bank rejected a plea agreement yesterday with federal prosecutors that most likely would have resulted in prison terms of about 20 years.

As a result, Sean Matsunaga, 21, and Jacob Hayme, 24, may now face charges that could bring sentences of anywhere from 40 years to life in prison, if the two are convicted.

Matsunaga's attorney, Richard Gronna, tried repeatedly to convince his client that the plea agreement was in his best interest.

Even U.S. District Judge Susan Oki Mollway seemed perplexed by the pair's refusal of the plea agreement. She asked the men several times if they understood what they were doing.

Finally, Matsunaga told the judge that he believed he might receive a sentence of less than 20 years by simply pleading guilty to the charges brought against him so far, instead of agreeing to the terms spelled out in the plea agreement.

Hayme told Mollway that he was "in the same boat" as Matsunaga, and that he, too, wanted to plead guilty only to the federal charges lodged against him so far in hopes of receiving a sentence of less than 20 years and did not want to sign the plea agreement.

But Mollway told the two that the charges brought against them so far were based on the expectation that they would sign the plea agreement. Since the two balked at doing so, Assistant U.S. Attorney Ronald Johnson, who is handling the case, is now free to go before a federal grand jury to seek an indictment against the pair on charges that could carry much stiffer penalties, Mollway said.

A third man, Albert Batalona, was sentenced last year in state court to life in prison without parole after he was found guilty of using a fully automatic assault rifle in the robbery and using the rifle to fire at a police officer, although the officer was not hit.

Because they rejected the plea agreement, Johnson said Matsunaga and Hayme now face the prospect of being indicted on federal charges of being involved in a federal crime in which an illegal, fully automatic firearm was used.

A conviction on those charges can bring a sentence of 40 years to life, Johnson said.