Domestic dispute led to charge of attempted murder Jonathan Kalani Ibana, 21, was arraigned Wednesday afternoon on a charge of trying to kill his 14-year-old girlfriend. According to Kaua’i County chief deputy prosecutor Craig De Costa, Ibana, who is accused
Domestic dispute led to charge of attempted murder
Jonathan Kalani Ibana, 21, was arraigned Wednesday afternoon on a charge of trying to kill his 14-year-old girlfriend.
According to Kaua’i County chief deputy prosecutor Craig De Costa, Ibana, who is accused of second-degree attempted murder, stabbed the victim twice in the back at a home in the Wailua Homesteads late Sunday night.
The girl remained at Wilcox Memorial Hospital Wednesday, where officials reported her in fair condition.
The unemployed Ibana was apprehended Monday afternoon at the Holiday Inn Sunspree Resort, where police found him “just cruising through the lobby,” said Kaua’i County Police Lt. Alvin Seto.
According to detectives, Ibana had recently gotten off probation for a previous misdemeanor conviction that was not related to domestic violence, which is how authorities characterized the alleged murder attempt.
“It was a boyfriend-girlfriend domestic situation,” said police Lt. Bill Ching.
De Costa explained why the charge against Ibana was second-degree attempted murder instead of first-degree.
“In Hawai’i, for first-degree there has to be more than one victim, or the (target) is a judge, prosecutor, police officer, or witness in a criminal trial, or a murder-for-hire scheme, in which case both the person hiring and the person hired can be charged,” De Costa said.
Ibana remains at Kaua’i Community Correctional Center in lieu of $250,000 bail.
He was arrestesd only four hours after his photograph appeared on the front page Monday of The Garden Island with an article asking for the public’s help in locating him. Two separate tipsters who recognized Ibana called Crimestoppers and will split an unspecified reward.
Crimestoppers, a program of the county police and Kaua’i Chamber of Commerce, routinely offers award for information leading to the arrest or conviction of crime suspects.
Staff writer Dennis Wilken can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 252) and mailto:dwilken@pulitzer.net
