POLICE BEAT
Police panel sued over legal fees

Advertiser Staff

Former Assistant Honolulu Police Chief Rafael Fajardo is suing the Honolulu Police Commission for failing to authorize payment of his legal costs in the so-called police cellblock food scam case.

Fajardo pleaded no contest to a second-degree theft charge earlier this year and was given a chance to have the case dismissed if he abides by conditions similar to probation.

Fajardo and three other Police Department employees were accused of using public money to buy food for prisoners held in the police cellblock and diverting the food to feed themselves and others.

Yesterday, Fajardo's lawyer, Howard Luke, filed a request asking that a Circuit Court judge order the commission to pay Fajardo's legal bill.

Moped accident ends with death

A 44-year-old man died yesterday from injuries suffered when he fell off his moped Thursday morning.

He was identified by the Honolulu medical examiner as Edwin Santana of 'Ewa Beach. He died at 4:12 a.m. yesterday. An autopsy will be conducted to determine the cause of death.

Police said Santana was traveling west on Nimitz Highway near Sand Island Access Road when he lost control of his moped and fell at 11:10 a.m. Thursday.

He suffered head injuries and was taken to The Queen's Medical Center in critical condition.

Police said Santana was not wearing a helmet at the time of the accident. The cause of the accident was under investigation.

Santana is the 58th traffic fatality for the year on O'ahu. There were 47 fatalities by this date last year.

Man found hurt on sidewalk identified

Detectives now know the identity of a critically injured man found Sept. 15 on a Waikiki sidewalk, but they still have no clue about how he got there or even if he was assaulted.

After asking the public this week to help identify the man, a caller on Thursday identified the 72-year-old man from his tattoos, said Honolulu Police Detective Letha DeCaires.

She would not release his name, however, saying he was still in critical condition at The Queen's Medical Center.