LIHU‘E — A Kapa‘a man, who was reportedly living on the beach when he was hired by a 72-year-old man with disabilities looking for a caregiver, was sentenced to one year in jail on Wednesday for stealing thousands of dollars through forged checks and scamming the elderly victim.
Mitchell Hughes, 27, appeared before Judge Kathleen Watanabe in Fifth Circuit Court in Lihu‘e on Wednesday, for the three separate cases surrounding the theft, which was reported to have occurred from November 2022 through January 2023.
Court documents describe Hughes as stealing thousands of dollars from a man, beginning with over $750 through forged checks between Nov. 28 and Dec. 2, 2022, a $388 forged check on Jan. 25, 2023, and a $1,705.26 check the following day on Jan. 26.
The theft continued to increase, as Hughes forged a $2,595.52 check on Jan. 27, a $136.12 check on Jan. 28, and a $2,565.43 check on Jan. 30. He faced 17 charges in total for the theft, many of which are felonies. Those charges include theft in the first, second and third degrees, as well as forgery and identity theft in the second degree.
Gary Simao, the victim, appeared in court via Zoom and recounted being deceived by both Hughes and his wife, who was not named in court.
Simao explained that he had offered them both a job to work as his caregiver, in return for free room and board, food and an additional $3,500 per month salary.
He had made the offer after meeting Hughes and his wife, who were homeless and living on the beach. He said he liked Hughes at the time, noting he is a “talented man.”
“But then when I found out what he really was, it changed everything for me,” Simao said.
Soon after Hughes and his wife moved into Simao’s house, Simao discovered they were stealing from him.
“They did their work, but then things started to go missing,” he said. “I started to get suspicious.”
The theft became obvious to Simao when he was balancing his checkbook and saw checks that had been written by Hughes.
“I know I never (wrote) the checks. And I blamed them right away. They said, ‘Oh Gary, you have dementia. Your insurance told us you have dementia.’ I never had dementia,” Simao said.
He said it also became apparent that they were doing drugs in the house. When they later moved out, Simao said his new caregiver found plastic bags of crystal methamphetamine that had been left by Hughes and his wife.
Simao noted that, in addition to the forged checks, Hughes had stolen other items from him, including his watch.
“They stole things from me. They took advantage of me,” he said.
Hughes had read from a prepared statement at the start of the sentencing, blaming his drug addiction for his actions.
“I am sorry for what I’ve done and the people I’ve hurt along the way,” he said. “The person I am when I’m on drugs is not the real me,” he added, noting the “real him” is honest, trustworthy, dependable and cares about other people.
For the charges surrounding the theft, Watanabe sentenced Hughes to five years of HOPE probation, also known as Hawai‘i Opportunity Probation with Enforcement, a more strict probation program for people with a long history of drug use and criminal behavior. He was also sentenced to one year in jail, with credit for time served.
Hughes was also sentenced for a case involving resisting arrest and assaulting two police officers on March 14, 2023. In that case, he was placed on HOPE probation for five years, one year in jail and the option to attend a drug treatment program after six months in jail.
In addition, Hughes will need to pay court, restitution and other fees, and need to start making payments of at least $100 per month starting 30 days after his release from jail.
“It’s apparent to the court … that you need to be closely supervised,” Watanabe said.
“Shame on you, Mr. Hughes,” added Watanabe, saying the situation would have lasting effects on Simao and make it difficult for him to trust other people.
“I hope you truly understand the depth of the hurt, the mistrust and how badly you took advantage of someone who took you off the street … and gave you quite a setup,” she added, noting she was “astounded” by the great deal Hughes was given by Simao.
