911 caller testifies in murder trial

LIHU‘E — Testimony in the first-degree murder trial of Vicente Kote Kapika Hilario continued Wednesday in 5th Circuit Court with eight witnesses, including a 911 caller and her children.

Hilario, 26, is accused of shooting Aureo Moore, 34, at Anahola Beach Park shortly before 11 a.m. on Dec. 17, 2010.

Ramy Mardonado testified as an Anahola resident who was driving to the Anahola Post Office with her toddler, when she drove by the entrance to Anahola Beach Park. She saw the mortally wounded victim on the ground just moments after the shooting.

There appeared to be a blanket on the ground near the lone pine tree from a distance, Mardonado said. Then she said it looked like someone had passed out, perhaps intoxicated, in the late morning.

A person walking on the road informed her that the man had just been shot. Mardonado said the person pointed to where the shooter had apparently ran off toward a trail, and she panicked because her two other children were riding bicycles in the back roads area.

After calling 911 at 10:56 a.m., Mardonado said she parked near the victim and left after lifeguards attended to the victim. He appeared to be alive and she called her children and told them to meet her at the park road.

County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Melinda Mendes showed Mardonado a photo of Moore being attended by water safety officers on the gravel shoulder of the road. She recalled that he was in a different spot under the tree a few feet away.

Mardonado met her children and drove them home to drop off their bicycles before she took them to speak with police at the crime scene.

The two children, a son who was 16 at the time, and a daughter who was 14, both testified in court on Wednesday.

It was winter break and they were riding bicycles when they said a man appeared briefly from shoulder-high bush, glanced at them, and then disappeared.

Both testified that the man appeared to be in his 20s. He was wearing black shorts, a white T-shirt with a design, and had long, dark hair, they said, and was barefoot.

When asked if there was anything unusual about the man, the girl said he didn’t look like the homeless people who live in the area. He also didn’t look like someone who used the area for recreational use, they said.

In his cross examination, Hilario’s court-appointed defense attorney Keith Shigetomi asked the two if there was really anything unusual about the man, or if it just seemed that way after they heard about the shooting?

The daughter said she probably wouldn’t have remembered the man.

The son said the man was out of place and appeared to be out of breath and hiding something. He didn’t see anyone else, or hear anyone talking, he said, and was just concerned for his sister’s safety after his mother called to say there was a shooting.

Both of them would pick Hilario out of a photo lineup later that day. They were not asked to point him out in court.

Brother of witness testifies

In the afternoon hearing, Joseph Kainoa Hansen-Loo, 27, testified as the elder brother of Jens Kyler Hansen-Loo, 23, and the best friend of David Manaku, who was living with him in 2010.

A one-bedroom apartment was an additional dwelling unit to the main residence of his grandmother’s farm, said Hansen-Loo. His uncle also stayed in the main residence, he said.

Manaku, Hilario and Kyler had free access to the apartment and his computer as trusted friends, he said. Manaku slept on the couch.

In response to questions from Mendes, Hansen-Loo said Kyler and Hilario were close friends. Manaku and Hilario were also friends, but at times Hilario would tell him what to do, he said.

“Not the other way around?” Mendes asked.

“No,” he replied.

Hansen-Loo said he was aware of the target shooting “activity” that Kyler, Manaku and Hilario took part in the Sunday before the murder, but stated he did not take part of it himself. The pistol they used would become the murder weapon, according to previous testimony from Manaku.

On the day of the murder, Hansen-Loo recalled that it was the first day of his new job. Manaku cut his hair for him to look more professional at work, he said.

Hansen-Loo testified that while at work he received three calls from Hilario’s phone between 12:18 p.m. and 1:27 p.m. He returned the call during a break, he said.

He would receive calls from Manaku from his cellblock on Dec. 18 at 12:27 p.m. and on Dec. 20 at 7:12 a.m., he said.

Shigetomi had no cross-examination.

Neighbor testifies

Another Anahola resident, Joseph Koko, testified to observing Hilario and Kyler trespass on his neighbor’s yard on the day of the shooting. They alerted dogs, and Koko said it was unusual because his neighbor has a fence and gate.

“I said ‘hey, what are you doing in my neighbor’s yard?’” Koko said.

Neither had footwear. The taller man had no hair, no shirt and was wearing fancy, colorful shorts with a lot of stripes, he said. The second man was shorter and wearing a white T-shirt, black shorts and had long, black hair, he said.

“They paid me no mind,” Koko said.

About the same time, a helicopter flew over and they jumped the gate and ran down Mahuahua Road, he said.

“They got excited about the helicopter,” Koko said.

Koko would later pick the men out of a photo lineup.

Police officer testifies

Detective Joseph Adric of the Kaua‘i Police Department started his testimony as the assistant to the investigator in charge of the Hilario case.

In cross-examination, Shigetomi questioned Adric about techniques used in interrogating Kyler. He asked if it was an “unbiassed, full and fair investigation” where an idea from the start could be abandoned if new information came along to rule it out?

“Yes,” Adric replied.

The detective went on to explain the process of gaining trust with a potential witness or suspect, and that sometimes the methods are unorthodox. They might even lie at times if the it is in the interest of getting the response, he said.

Shigetomi asked if the questioning included inducements or rewards.

“No,” Adric said. It is about getting the desired response.

Adric will retake the stand today at 8:30 a.m.

Ray Manaku testified as the father of David Manaku. He presented his cell phone to police the day after the shooting, as he said it was often used by David who did not have his own phone.

Ryan Mora, a retail sale manager for AT&T Mobility, testified to the phone records of subscribers that are being used as evidence in the case.