Posted on: Thursday, April 7, 2005

Manoa briefed on sex assaults

By James Gonser
Advertiser Urban Honolulu Writer

Manoa residents worried about a recent series of sexual assaults in and around their neighborhood met with police last night to discuss the crimes and explore what could be done to protect themselves and their families.

About 30 people attended the Manoa Neighborhood Board meeting to hear police give what information they could about four sexual assaults last month in Manoa and Kaimuki.

"We cannot answer specific questions," said Detective Phillip Buchanan. "These cases are still under investigation. These four cases in the past month are not related in any way. There were four separate incidents and are not a serial rapist."

Buchanan said arrests have been made in two of the cases — the March 23 kidnapping, sexual assault and robbery of a woman in Manoa Valley and the March 12 sexual assault of an elderly woman in Kaimuki — but that no arrests have been made in a March 12 case where a man exposed himself and threatened a woman in her Kaimuki home with a knife, and in the most recent case in which a woman was kidnapped and raped by five men near the University of Hawai'i March 28. Buchanan would not comment on where the two Manoa women were assaulted.

Sean Lathrop, who works for the Hawaii Pacific Baptist Convention on Vancouver Street, just a block away from the March 28 abduction, said street lighting is very bad in the area and he asked the board for help getting improvements made.

"We are one block from the UH campus and the street is full of dark spots," Lathrop said. "It should be simple to provide more lights. Students come to my office all the time and they need protection."

James Harwood, chairman of the Manoa Neighborhood Board, said that is a good suggestion and that the board will try to help make that happen.

Resident John Gollner suggested that residents work together to set up a crime watch alert system.

Gollner said 'Ewa residents set up a system to contact each other via e-mail or telephone whenever there is someone suspicious in or driving through their neighborhood.

He said it creates much more awareness of what is going on in your neighborhood, and better communication between residents and police.

"It coincides with the Neighborhood Watch system," Gollner said. "First, call the police when you see a crime, then contact your neighbors to let them know what is going on.

"For my younger sister and all these girls we have to do everything we can."

Reach James Gonser at jgonser@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2431.