HONLULU — Sebastian Mahkwan, one of two men indicted in a murder-for-hire plot in the Jan. 23 acid attack on a Chinese-language teacher, was found mentally fit on Monday to stand trial.
Mahkwan, allegedly hired by a second man, was charged in a March 12 superseding indictment with second-degree attempted murder, first-degree assault, attempted first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree attempted murder and/or attempted second-degree murder and/or first-degree assault, for the attack fronting Planet Fitness near the Ala Moana Center of a 25-year-old woman.
Danying Zhang, a Chinese national teaching Mandarin at Maryknoll Schools, suffered substantial risk of death, with oral injury that compromised her airway, and suffers permanent disfigurement from burns to her face and body and anticipated impairment from skin grafts, the indictment says.
Judge Ronald Johnson heard the matter Monday and found Mahkwan fit to stand trial after considering the reports of three examiners, who found him able to understand the proceedings and assist in his defense, and that he has sufficient present ability to consult with his attorney “with a reasonable degree of rational understanding,” the judge wrote.
Johnson ordered Mahkwan to remain in custody at O‘ahu Community Correctional Center without bail. The case moves forward to trial, which is now set for the week of Aug. 12 before Judge Faauuga Tootoo.
Mahkwan’s court-appointed lawyer, Keith Shigetomi, filed a motion March 28 for examination of his client as to his physical or mental disease, disorder or defect.
Shigetomi, in a declaration attached to the motion, said Mahkwan had been previously diagnosed with a mental illness, though he did not name the illness. He said that Mahkwan was hospitalized in September for hearing voices, still hears voices and has been placed on suicide watch while incarcerated at OCCC.
He has been prescribed an antipsychotic drug while at OCCC, Shigetomi wrote.
Paul M. Cameron was indicted March 12 in a superseding indictment for allegedly hiring Mahkwan in what prosecutors called a murder-for-hire plot in order to cast doubt on himself in an April 7, 2023, chemical attack on Davina Licon, a woman he knew, outside a 24 Hour Fitness in Mililani, for which Cameron was already indicted and in custody awaiting trial.
Police said Cameron met Mahkwan while they were together in OCCC, and Cameron arranged for bail for Mahkwan so he could be released in order to carry out the attack.
Court documents say Cameron called Mahkwan his boyfriend.
Mahkwan had been in custody for third-degree assault and drug charges.
The indictment says that from Nov. 1 to Jan. 23, Cameron, while incarcerated, made calls to his mother and others to arrange to use his motorcycle as collateral and to get Mahkwan’s food stamp money, to secure Mahkwan’s $8,000 bail.
Mahkwan was released Jan. 22 on bail from OCCC, a day before the acid attack.
Police arrested Mahkwan on Jan. 25, and he was initially indicted Jan. 30 on second-degree attempted murder and first-degree assault charges.
The superseding indictment revealed the alleged plot, linking the two men, charging Cameron with conspiracy to commit attempted first-degree murder and/or attempted second-degree murder and/or first-degree assault, attempted first- degree murder, accomplice to second-degree attempted murder and accomplice to first-degree assault.
It also says on Jan. 27 a corrections officer at OCCC found an envelope containing instructions and details on the April 7, 2023, acid attack in Mililani, and alleges Cameron authored instructions on committing an attack similar to the 2023 attack, where to get acid and what to tell law enforcement about the 2023 acid attack.
