Posted on: Saturday, October 2, 2004
Harris donor fined $2,000
By Johnny Brannon
Advertiser Staff Writer
Dwight Mitsunaga, the brother of a top Honolulu political fund-raiser under investigation in the long-running review of Mayor Jeremy Harris' campaign finances, was fined $2,000 yesterday after pleading no contest to two misdemeanors stemming from the probe.
Deputy city prosecutor Randal Lee said in a court hearing last week that Mitsunaga's brother, Dennis Mitsunaga, had been named by another defendant as a person who solicited campaign funds for Harris and said he was influential in city contracting.
Dennis Mitsunaga has not been charged with any crime, and has not been subpoenaed or interviewed by prosecutors, his attorney said.
"There was no reason to mention Dennis' name," attorney Michael Green said. "What was the value of that, other than to tarnish his name and put it out there?"
State Campaign Spending Commission director Robert Watada said Dennis Mitsunaga's name "keeps coming up" in his separate investigation of illegal donations to Harris, which has resulted in fines against dozens of city contractors who made illegal donations.
Watada declined to say whether any witnesses he interviewed had explicitly accused Dennis Mitsunaga of collecting money in exchange for help regarding city contracts.
Dennis Mitsunaga is president of one of the state's largest engineering and architectural consulting companies and was a principal political fund-raiser for numerous Democratic Party politicians, including Harris and former Gov. Ben Cayetano.
Dwight Mitsunaga pleaded no contest to making donations to Harris under a false name, and of exceeding the legal limit of $4,000 per donor. He gave Harris' campaign committee more than $16,000, according to Lee.
Circuit Court Judge Lono Lee fined Dwight Mitsunaga $1,000 for each of the two charges but deferred acceptance of his plea, meaning Mitsunaga can clear his record if he is not charged with another offense for one year.
Harris has not been charged with wrongdoing, and his attorney has repeatedly said there is no connection between campaign contributions and city contracts. Prosecutors have not publicly alleged any direct link.
Reach Johnny Brannon at jbrannon@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8070.
