Jail escapee caught
Jail escapee caught
A 31-year-old Kailua-Kona man wanted for allegedly escaping from a correctional facility was arrested in West Hawaii, police said Monday, after nearly a month at large.
Ryan Jeffries-Hamar was located and arrested Saturday in Kealakekua near the top of Halekii Street. He is suspected of escaping from Hale Nani Aug. 14.
Jeffries-Hamar also had an outstanding arrest warrant for violation of terms and conditions of furlough that he was arrested for. Detectives from the Area II Criminal Investigation Section charged Jeffries-Hamar with second-degree escape Sunday. His bail was set at $10,000. The court set no bail for the arrest warrant.
He is being held at the Kona police cellblock pending his initial court appearance, which was scheduled for Monday.
Stores stay open despite paving
Waimea Center on Mamalahoa Highway began repaving its parking lot Sunday, KTA officials said. The parking lot work is expected to continue through November.
All shops and vendors will remain open during their regular business hours and continue with business as usual. The repaving will be done mostly at night, but will need a day’s time for the asphalt to cure.
The center will post extra security as needed during this process, officials said.
Billionaire inherits Lanai water dispute
HONOLULU — The billionaire who purchased most of the Hawaiian island of Lanai will be inheriting a water dispute that has already gone before the state Supreme Court without a final resolution.
The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported Monday the Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeals returned the case back to a circuit judge last month. A group called Lanaians for Sensible Growth is challenging developer Castle & Cooke’s irrigation of the Manele Bay golf course with water from the island’s high-level aquifer.
The legal dispute has spanned more than two decades.
In June, Oracle Corp. CEO Larry Ellison purchased 98 percent of the island’s 141 square miles.
Castle & Cooke lawyers say the golf course is crucial to providing jobs.
But the group says the case is about protecting underground water sources.
Honolulu mayor travels to China, Washington
HONOLULU — Honolulu’s mayor is headed to China for a conference.
Mayor Peter Carlise’s office says he left Honolulu Monday to attend the Chengdu 2012 China International Friendship Cities conference.
He will then travel to Washington, D.C. next week for meetings with the Federal Transit Administration and others regarding Honolulu’s rail transit project. He will be accompanied by Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation officials and the city council’s chairman.
He is to return to Honolulu on Friday, Sept. 21.
Oahu home, condo sales, prices increased in August
HONOLULU — The Honolulu Board of Realtors says the Oahu real estate market ended the summer with strong numbers.
According to release figures for the month of August, the median price of a single-family home jumped 9 percent from $557,500 to $609,000, compared to the same month last year. Sales last month increased 5 percent from 279 to 293.
Last month’s median condominium price was $320,000, a nearly 7 percent increase from $300,000, compared with August 2011. The number of condo sales increased 21 percent from 338 to 409.
Board President Joe Paikai says this has been one of the best summers Oahu’s real estate market has seen in many years. He says it’s a good indicator the market is finally recovering.
Maui wildlife refuge to open for rare Saturday
KIHEI, Maui — Maui residents will have a rare opportunity to visit a national wildlife refuge on a weekend this Saturday.
The Kealia Pond National Wildlife Refuge covers 700 acres along Maui’s south-central coast and is one of the few natural wetlands remaining in Hawaii.
It’s typically open during the daytime on weekdays. It opens on Saturdays only for special events or volunteer service projects.
This Saturday, the Kanuimanu Pond public viewing area will be open, and visitors should be able to see the endangered Hawaiian stilt and Hawaiian coot. The public may also check out a new visitor center that opened in February.
Refuge Manager Glynnis Nakai says the refuge hopes to attract more Maui residents by opening on Saturday. He says many people don’t realize the refuge is there.
Hawaii medical students treat homeless 7,600 times
HONOLULU — University of Hawaii medical students have treated homeless shelter patients more than 7,600 times in the six years since the university started its homeless outreach program.
The John A. Burns School of Medicine said Friday nearly 450 medical students have volunteered for the program since 2006.
Students set up mobile medical clinics three times a week at state-sponsored shelters in Kakaako, Waianae and Kalaeloa.
The program also takes its mobile clinic van once a month to the United Methodist Church in Honolulu to care for homeless people not living on the streets and not in shelters.
The Hawaii Homeless Outreach and Medical Education Project is featured in the September issue of the Hawaii Journal of Medicine & Public Health.
By local and wire sources