Hawai'i briefs
Advertiser Staff
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Human remains found in Hilo
HILO, Hawai'i — Acting on information in an anonymous letter, police found human skeletal remains yesterday in a wooded area beside Waiau Stream off Kaiulani Street. Some personal items were found, but no identification, said Lt. Steven Guillermo.
The Hilo Criminal Investigation Section initiated a coroner's inquest in an attempt to determine the cause of death. Detectives also are reviewing missing persons reports for the past several years.
Marijuana raids net 8,000 plants
HILO, Hawai'i — Big Island police destroyed 8,092 marijuana plants during a five-day eradication effort that ended Saturday. No arrests were made during the operation, which concentrated on the districts of Hamakua, Puna, North Hilo and South Hilo. The marijuana ranged in height from seedlings to plants 12 feet tall, according to Lt. Norman Keamo.
Police also raided a Mountain View home, seizing 1,103 marijuana plants up to 6 feet in height. Police from Honolulu and Maui helped, along with the Hawai'i National Guard and the federal Drug Enforcement Administration.
WINDWARD O'AHU
Police to stand watch at Stairs
Police will be on duty at Haiku Stairs again this weekend to prevent people from climbing the trail. The city began posting officers at the stairs four weeks ago when it said the stairs would be open in two to three weeks. The stairs, which were closed in 1987 because of disrepair, remain closed until the city produces warning and educational signs that will be posted there. The city finished an $875,000 repair project on the stairs in October.
Tunnel cleaning closes highway
The Kane'ohe-bound lane of Likelike Highway will be closed from 7 p.m. Saturday to 7 a.m. Sunday so the Wilson Tunnel can be cleaned. On the Windward side, the Kane'ohe-bound lane of Likelike will be open only from Kahekili Highway to Kane'ohe town. Motorists are advised to use Pali Highway or H-3 to get to Kane'ohe from Honolulu.
HONOLULU
Fatal stabbing on ship probed
Federal officials are investigating the death of a crew member on a Japanese fishing vessel that docked in Honolulu yesterday. The crew member was fatally stabbed on the Ebisu-Maru 31 on July 13 while the ship was about 2,500 miles southeast of Hawai'i, the Coast Guard said. Another crew member was being held as a suspect in the killing.
Japanese officials asked the United States to help in the investigation because Honolulu was the closest port for the ship, which was met by members of the Coast Guard, Federal Bureau of Investigation and Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement when it arrived in Honolulu Harbor yesterday afternoon, the Coast Guard said.
