‘OMA‘O — A Kapa‘a man was arrested for an alleged hit-and-run on Friday afternoon that resulted in a bicyclist suffering critical injuries, authorities said.
Kib Ho‘opi‘i, 45, was taken into custody a short while after the Toyota Tundra pickup he was driving rear-ended a bicyclist that was traveling westbound on the shoulder of Kaumuali‘i Highway in the vicinity of Maluhia Road. The bicyclist was identified as a 65-year-old Lithuanian woman.
Ho‘opi‘i allegedly fled the scene of the crash, which happened at about 1:30 p.m., prior to the arrival of first responders, according to a county press release.
“Upon arrival, responding firefighters from the Kalaheo fire station found the bicyclist, who was wearing a helmet, with severe injuries to her leg and injuries to her head,” the Kaua‘i Police Department said in a statement.
The Lithuanian woman was treated on-scene before she was transported to Wilcox Medical Center in Lihu‘e.
She was later taken via medevac to O‘ahu, where she was in critical condition as of Saturday afternoon.
Witnesses to the crash described the truck involved in the incident, which led police officers to locate the driver a short time after the crash. Ho‘opi‘i was then arrested.
He faces charges of negligent injury in the first degree, accidents involving death or serious injury, reckless driving and inattention to driving. He is in custody with bail set at $100,000.
The incident shut down Kaumuali‘i Highway in both directions for about two hours while the police department’s Traffic Safety Section conducted an on-scene investigation. The investigation is ongoing.
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Wyatt Haupt Jr., editor, can be reached at 808-245-0457 or whaupt@thegardenisland.com.
