Hawaii ‘master of disguise’ sentenced for escape, now facing murder charge out of California

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – The Hawaii man known as a “master of disguise” has been sentenced for walking away from work furlough.

Tyler Adams will serve five years for the escape charge in addition to the years left on for his theft convictions.

The attorney general’s office asked for consecutive sentences because of his history of fraud.

Adams claimed he escaped and left Laumaka Work Furlough in 2019 because he was being assaulted and extorted in Halawa Correctional Facility.

His attorney, Myles Breiner, told the circuit court judge that he was afraid of the gangs in the prison.

“The gangs run the system. The guards give them free run so long as they don’t cause trouble for the guards,” Breiner said.

Deputy Attorney General Adrian Dhakhwa said Adams deserves the consecutive time because he didn’t turn himself in; he was captured four years after he escaped.

“He not only left the jurisdiction, he re-offended,” Dhakhwa said. “He got subsequent convictions in Texas and California.”

Breiner told the judge his client won’t be getting out of prison because he is wanted in the federal system for other crimes including border violations and a murder case.

He is accused of killing his girlfriend whose body was found in Tijuana, Mexico. No charges could be found on the federal court system, but Breiner said in court that he was in touch with deputy U.S. attorneys out of San Diego who told him his client was wanted for the murder case.

While Adams lived in Hawaii, he was also known as Kevin Kennedy, Lance Irwin, and Michael Whittman, supposedly names of students at the University of Hawaii law school.

Adams, who is now 52, was taken into custody in Newport Beach, California last year and was extradited to Hawaii.

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