Man flees courtroom after sentencing
By David Waite
Advertiser Courts Writer
Police were searching yesterday for a 25-year-old O'ahu man who ran out of a courtroom shortly after he was sentenced to up to five years in prison for breaking into a car and had his probation revoked on several prior convictions.
Shaun Pagilawan, who also goes by the names of Shaun Paglinawan and Brandon Ferreira, bolted from a fourth-floor courtroom just after Circuit Judge Marie Milks sentenced him to a prison term, said Deputy Prosecutor Julian White.
Shaun Pagilawan escaped from Circuit Court after he was sentenced to prison.
White speculated that Pagilawan was upset that his probation on two prior felony convictions was revoked and that he was not given probation yesterday on his latest conviction on a charge of unlawful entry of a motor vehicle.
"I heard someone shout for a deputy sheriff and when I turned around, he had already left," White said.
White estimated that criminal defendants flee from Circuit Court "once or twice a year" on average.
Police issued a CrimeStoppers alert yesterday afternoon asking for the public's help in finding Pagilawan.
Anonymous calls may be made to CrimeStoppers at 955-8300, or *CRIME on cellular phones.
When last seen running from the courtroom, Pagilawan was wearing a red shirt and red pants. He is 5 feet 6, with black hair and brown eyes, weighs about 135 pounds and has a tattoo of a clown on his left leg.
