Police Beat

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Two hospitalized in Waipahu crash

Two men were in critical condition yesterday at The Queen's Medical Center after a one-car accident early yesterday in Waipahu.

Police said the car was speeding in a northbound lane of Paiwa Street, near the Akihiloa Street intersection, at 12:20 a.m. when it struck a light pole.

The 31-year-old driver and the 29-year-old front-seat passenger were taken to Queen's, along with a 40-year-old backseat passenger, whose condition was listed as fair.

Pregnant woman dragged by car

A couple's argument in Ma'ili on Monday night escalated into an attempted-murder investigation when the man drove off, dragging his pregnant girlfriend along for about 100 yards, police said.

The incident occurred at about 7 p.m. near the intersection of Farrington Highway and Mana Street.

Police said the woman, eight months pregnant and holding a 21-month-old toddler, was arguing with her boyfriend, standing outside his car.

As the 22-year-old man drove off, the woman's hand was caught in the driver's-side window and she was pulled along with the car. The child was handed to a passer-by, police said, and the woman was dragged until the car hit a curb and she was dislodged. The suspect fled but later turned himself in.

Boyfriend held as assault suspect

Police arrested a 26-year-old Waipahu man on Tuesday on suspicion of second-degree assault and burglary when he reportedly pursued his fleeing girlfriend to another home.

The assault was reported after 2:30 p.m. on Waipahu Street, when the man struck the 31-year-old woman with a detached car rear-view mirror, police said.

The woman hid in a nearby home, police said, which the suspect entered and assaulted her again. Police later found the man and arrested him.

Hilo man in hospital after house fire

HILO, Hawai'i — A Hilo man was injured in a fire that caused $110,000 damage to his parents' home Tuesday evening.

A neighbor who spotted the fire on Uluwai Street near the Kaumana Fire Station used a garden hose in an attempt to douse the flames but was unsuccessful, said Fire Capt. George Van Gieson.

The adult son of the couple who owned the home was rescued from a bathroom and taken to Hilo Medical Center, where he was in guarded condition.

Van Gieson said the circumstances of the blaze are suspicious, as fires apparently were ignited in two bedrooms. A fire investigator is following up on the case, he said.