Hawaii
Hawaii mahunt for felon out on bail ends in fatal police shootout
- Sidney Tafokitau, a felon prohibited from owning a high-powered rifle, triggered an islandwide manhunt in Hawaii on New Year’s Day.
- Tafokitau allegedly shot a woman, carjacked another at gunpoint and engaged in a shootout with Honolulu police that wounded two officers.
- Court records reveal Tafokitau’s criminal history, including a 20-year prison sentence for robbery and prior gun convictions.
The subject of an islandwide manhunt New Year’s Day in Hawaii was a felon barred from owning the high-powered rifle he used to open fire on Honolulu police in a shootout that left two officers wounded and the suspect dead, court records show.
Sidney Tafokitau was accused of shooting a woman and carjacking another woman at gunpoint before leading officers on a chase around the island of Oahu. He also had posted bail just two weeks prior on gun-related charges.
The fallout from the dramatic pursuit continued days later, as police faced criticism for the pursuit and for not alerting the public as the situation unfolded.
HAWAII MAN ACCUSED OF ATTEMPTED MURDER STEALS CAR AT GUNPOINT, DIES AFTER FIREFIGHT WITH POLICE
“I think in the past 48 hours there’s been a lot of talk about how the system failed,” Doug Chin, chair of the Honolulu Police Commission and Hawaii’s former attorney general, told The Associated Press Wednesday. “I hear reports that, you know, his bail was too low, he had an unregistered firearm, the public release of information was inadequate or even that he should not have been chased at all.”
Honolulu police assess the scene around a stolen vehicle stolen on University Avenue on Jan. 1, 2024, in Honolulu. Authorities in Hawaii say a man shot and wounded a woman, stole a car at gunpoint and was later killed in a shootout with police that left two officers wounded. (Jamm Aquino/Honolulu Star-Advertiser via AP)
But it’s too soon to point to anything until there’s more information, he said, noting that it will likely be discussed at this month’s commission meeting. “I think the entire system is tested when you have a very, very serious situation like this,” he said.
Court records show a long criminal history for Tafokitau, including a 20-year prison sentence for robbery and convictions for gun crimes. In November, he pleaded not guilty to a slew of firearms charges, including possessing a firearm as a felon. He was out on $75,000 bail, which had been reduced from $150,000. State Public Defender Jon Ikegana, whose office represented him, declined to comment Wednesday.
In mid-December, Honolulu police asked for the public’s help in locating Tafokitau, called him armed and dangerous, and said he committed a shooting and stabbing.
2 DEAD, 2 INJURED NEAR HONOLULU AFTER SHOOTING BREAKS OUT AT BOAT HARBOR
After Monday’s shootout culminated near the University of Hawaii’s main campus, Honolulu Police Chief Arthur “Joe” Logan defended not issuing alerts. He said police didn’t want the public getting involved in the chase he described as “fluid” and which moved rapidly across the island.
Tafokitau was using an unregistered AR-15 type rifle, police said in a statement. A spokesperson with the Honolulu Police Department didn’t address an inquiry from the AP asking for a response to criticism about the chase that has been described as taking place at high speeds at times.
Police also said a woman who was shot before the pursuit Monday, as well as the two officers wounded in the shootout, remained hospitalized Wednesday evening. The wounded officers were expected to recover.
Former Honolulu Police Deputy Chief John McCarthy told Hawaii News Now officers endangered others by engaging in the pursuit.
“They forgot their basic mission to protect life and property,” he told the Honolulu news stations. “They endangered life and property.”
Hawaii News Now reported motorist Erin Valentine was carjacked when Tafokitau was involved in a crash during the pursuit in Kaneohe, a Honolulu suburb.
“He opened up the car door and just lifted up the gun straight to my face and just said, ‘Get out,’” she told the TV station.
Hawaii’s statewide police union and Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi defended the officers.
LOVE TRIANGLE MURDER VICTIM IN HAWAII CHEATED WITH MULTIPLE WOMEN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY SAYS
“Without our officers’ courageous actions and sacrifice, the situation could have been far worse,” Blangiardi said.
Officers, who had already been on the lookout for him for the December shooting and stabbing and for the Monday shooting, needed to pursue him to apprehend him, said Honolulu Lt. Robert Cavaco, president of the State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers.
“For our officers, it was a very hard situation to deal with because he shot at them at multiple locations during the pursuit,” Cavaco said.
Chin, the police commission chair, noted how shocking the situation was in a city and state with historically low violent crime rates per capita compared to other parts of the U.S.
“What strikes me as extreme is the duration of the crime spree, the number of different incidents involved and the many different locations where the suspect ended up on Oahu,” Chin said.
Hawaii
Hawaii County Surf Forecast for March 04, 2026 | Big Island Now
Forecast for Big Island Windward and Southeast
| Shores | Tonight | Wednesday | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Surf | Surf | |||
| PM | AM | AM | PM | |
| North Facing | 2-4 | 2-4 | 2-4 | 2-4 |
| East Facing | 3-5 | 4-6 | 4-6 | 5-7 |
| South Facing | 1-3 | 1-3 | 1-3 | 1-3 |
| Weather | Mostly cloudy. Numerous showers. | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low Temperature | In the upper 60s. | ||||||
| Winds | East winds 5 to 10 mph. | ||||||
|
|||||||
| Weather | Partly sunny. Numerous showers. | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Temperature | In the upper 70s. | |||||
| Winds | East winds 10 to 15 mph. | |||||
|
||||||
| Sunrise | 6:37 AM HST. | |||||
| Sunset | 6:27 PM HST. | |||||
Forecast for Big Island Leeward
| Shores | Tonight | Wednesday | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Surf | Surf | |||
| PM | AM | AM | PM | |
| West Facing | 2-4 | 2-4 | 2-4 | 1-3 |
| South Facing | 1-3 | 1-3 | 1-3 | 1-3 |
| Weather | Mostly sunny until 6 PM, then mostly cloudy. Hazy. |
||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low Temperature | In the upper 60s. | ||||||||||
| Winds | West winds around 5 mph early in the afternoon, becoming light and variable. |
||||||||||
|
|||||||||||
| Weather | Partly sunny. Hazy. | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Temperature | In the mid 80s. | ||||||||
| Winds | Light and variable winds, becoming west around 5 mph in the afternoon. |
||||||||
|
|||||||||
| Sunrise | 6:41 AM HST. | ||||||||
| Sunset | 6:31 PM HST. | ||||||||
The current moderate northwest swell will continue a gradual decline through Thursday. A small west-northwest swell will arrive on Friday and hold through the weekend, followed by a small north-northwest swell early next week. Choppy east shore surf will build to near seasonal average by Wednesday as trade winds strengthen over and east of the islands. Little change is expected along east facing shores through the weekend, followed by a possible decline early next week if winds veer southerly. Surf along south facing shores will remain small to tiny through the weekend, and some islands may an increase in choppy surf if southerly winds develop early next week.
NORTH EAST
am
pm
Surf: Minimal (ankle high or less) surf.
Conditions: Semi choppy with ESE winds 5-10mph in the morning increasing to 10-15mph in the afternoon.
NORTH WEST
am
pm
Surf: Minimal (ankle high or less) surf.
Conditions: Clean in the early morning with ESE winds less than 5mph. Bumpy/semi bumpy conditions move in during the morning hours with the winds shifting W 5-10mph.
WEST
am
pm
Surf: Minimal (ankle high or less) surf.
Conditions: Semi glassy in the morning with N winds less than 5mph. Bumpy/semi bumpy conditions for the afternoon with the winds shifting WNW 5-10mph.
SOUTH EAST
am
pm
Surf: Minimal (ankle high or less) surf.
Conditions: Light sideshore texture in the morning with NE winds 10-15mph. This becomes Sideshore texture/chop for the afternoon.
Data Courtesy of NOAA.gov and SwellInfo.com
Hawaii
Hawaii delegation continues to blast U.S. attack on Iran | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Hawaii
Blood moon to dazzle Hawaii skies tonight
We recognize you are attempting to access this website from a country belonging to the European Economic Area (EEA) including the EU which
enforces the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and therefore access cannot be granted at this time.
For any issues, contact news@kitv.com or call 808-535-0400 .
-
World6 days agoExclusive: DeepSeek withholds latest AI model from US chipmakers including Nvidia, sources say
-
Massachusetts7 days agoMother and daughter injured in Taunton house explosion
-
Denver, CO7 days ago10 acres charred, 5 injured in Thornton grass fire, evacuation orders lifted
-
Louisiana1 week agoWildfire near Gum Swamp Road in Livingston Parish now under control; more than 200 acres burned
-
Oregon5 days ago2026 OSAA Oregon Wrestling State Championship Results And Brackets – FloWrestling
-
Florida3 days agoFlorida man rescued after being stuck in shoulder-deep mud for days
-
Maryland3 days agoAM showers Sunday in Maryland
-
Culture1 week agoTry This Quiz on Thrilling Books That Became Popular Movies