Posted on: Saturday, February 5, 2005
POLICE BEAT
Lab components found after fire
Advertiser Staff
A fire yesterday destroyed a Pearl City home that police said contained chemicals that could be used to make crystal methamphetamine, or ice.
Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser A 69-year-old woman who owns the home and her son, described as in his 40s, were not at home when the fire broke out. There were no reports of injuries, although two cats were found dead, said Capt. Emmit Kane of the Honolulu Fire Department.
Kane said about 60 percent of the three-bedroom single-story home was damaged by the fire.
Damage was estimated at $335,000 to the building and its contents.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
HILO, Hawai'i — A 32-year-old Hilo man died early yesterday after his car crashed on Hawai'i Belt Road near Shipman Industrial Park.
Shane A. Beauchan was pronounced dead at 4 a.m. at Hilo Medical Center.
The accident occurred at 1:37 a.m. about 0.3 mile north of Kipimana Street.
Police said Beauchan was headed south when he lost control of a 1991 Nissan two-door sedan and struck an embankment. He was not wearing a seat belt and was ejected from the vehicle, according to officers.
Investigators believe speed and alcohol are factors.
Beauchan's death was the sixth traffic fatality on the Big Island this year, compared with one at this time a year ago.
A Hawai'i prisoner at the Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility in Tutwiler, Miss., was returned to the prison yesterday after a suicide attempt.
Convicted murderer Paul Ah Sing, 41, was rushed to the hospital Thursday after he apparently attempted to hang himself in his cell with a homemade rope, said Mike Gaede, of the Hawai'i Department of Public Safety.
Ah Sing is serving a life sentence and is eligible for parole in 2019, Gaede said.
A 63-year-old visitor from Japan was killed Thursday while riding a cart at a Kahuku golf course.
Police said the man was golfing with his grandson when the cart crashed and the man struck his head on a paved path. The man was taken to Castle Medical Center where he was declared dead.
A 15-year-old Wai'anae boy was arrested Thursday for suspicion of first-degree burglary and fourth-degree sexual assault.
An 18-year-old woman told police the boy entered her Wai'anae home about 5:30 a.m. and sexually assaulted her.
The boy ran from the house but was found nearby and identified by the victim, police said.
Honolulu police are reminding motorists that checkpoints will be set up during the Super Bowl weekend to deter alcohol- and drug-impaired drivers.
As of yesterday, six people have died on O'ahu this year in six crashes, police said. One of the fatalities was alcohol- or drug-related, police said.
The fire was reported at about 7 a.m. at 1978 Ho'okumu Place in Pearl City. After the blaze was extinguished, police said they found components of a clandestine drug lab in the home. No arrests had been made last night.
A Fire Department investigator prepares to examine a fire-damaged home in Pearl City. Police said they found chemical components of what could be a drug lab in the three-bedroom house.
Traffic fatality is Big Isle's sixth
Hawai'i inmate attempted suicide
Visitor, 63, dies in golf cart crash
Boy arrested in alleged assault
Honolulu police plan checkpoints
