Posted at 10:35 a.m., Friday, January 17, 2003
HPD officers can exercise federal powers
By Rod Ohira
Advertiser Staff Writer
"Right now, we have the best of both worlds because we can charge cases at both the state and federal levels," said Lt. Ray Quon, head of HPD's Robbery Detail.
Federal indictments against Ted Esteban and Jay Young Kwon for 10 armed robbery cases in December, as well as several separate state robbery cases against the pair, are examples of what the broader HPD investigative powers represent in robbery cases.
Since the arrests of Esteban and Kwon, police have seen "at least an 80 percent drop-off in robberies," Quon said.
The cross-deputization of police officers resulted because the FBI is concentrating its manpower on homeland defense and terrorism. It is also because of President Bush's commitment to the Safe Neighborhood project to address firearms used in the commission of crimes. In establishing a Violent Crimes Task Force last year, some HPD officers were cross-deputized as federal agents to assist federal prosecutors and the FBI.
