A Hilo grand jury on Wednesday indicted four men in unrelated cases — two allegedly involving firearms in a lava zone, one involving police gunfire in Puna and one regarding an alleged sex assault at a Hilo hotel.
A 10-count indictment charges 61-year-old John William “Bill” Hubbard of Pahoa with first-degree robbery, carrying a firearm in the commission of a separate felony, illegally carrying a handgun, two counts of first-degree reckless endangering and five counts of first-degree terroristic threatening.
First-degree robbery and carrying a firearm in the commission of a separate felony are Class A felonies, and Hubbard could be sentenced to life in prison, with the possibility of parole, if convicted of both charges.
Hubbard is the man police say threatened five people May 29 in Leilani Estates and fired multiple gunshots in an incident captured on video that went viral on social media.
Three of the alleged victims, Ethan Edwards, Lauren Kaech and Aurorah Davis, already testified during a preliminary hearing that was to have concluded June 22 in Hilo District Court. The indictment renders the hearing unnecessary, and Hubbard’s case will be moved to Hilo Circuit Court for arraignment and possible trial.
Hubbard also was indicted in U.S. District Court in Honolulu for being a felon in possession of a firearm. He was convicted of a felony drug charge in Kentucky in 1976 and a felony firearms charge in Oregon in 1986.
He remains in custody at Hawaii Community Correctional Center in lieu of $195,000 bail.
In an unrelated case, an eight-count indictment charges 50-year-old Edward “Eddie” I. Wilson of Opihikao with two counts each of first-degree robbery, first-degree theft, first-degree terroristic threatening and first-degree property damage, all during a declared emergency.
The robbery charges are Class A felonies. Court documents indicate Wilson has no prior felony convictions.
Police arrested Wilson the evening of May 30, shortly after an alleged gunpoint robbery on Kamaili Road in lower Puna.
According to police, Wilson was in possession of photographic equipment reportedly taken during the robbery of two men, identified in court documents as Austen Click and Roger Apolinar, who were there to photograph lava from the Kilauea eruption. Click and Apolinar reportedly told police they were robbed by a pair of men, one who brandished a handgun and another who demanded their belongings.
The second suspect, the alleged gunman, is still at large.
A bench warrant set Wilson’s bail at $32,000, and he remains in custody at HCCC.
In another case, Joseph Paul “JP” Branco, a 32-year-old Puna man, is charged in a 10-count indictment with first-degree terroristic threatening, driving a stolen vehicle, resisting an order to stop, first-degree promotion of a dangerous drug, possession of drug paraphernalia and five firearms offenses. The two most serious offenses, first-degree promotion of a dangerous drug and possessing a firearm in the commission of a felony, are Class A felonies.
Prosecutors are seeking a possible life sentence, calling Branco a “multiple offender” in the document.
Branco allegedly tried to run over Puna patrol officers Bryson Miyose and Paul Wright III with a stolen Toyota Tacoma pickup truck on April 27. The officers responded by firing 13 shots at the truck, police said. The incident allegedly occurred on Waimaka O Pele Road between Kopua Farm Lots and Fern Acres.
According to police, the truck was damaged by the gunfire but neither Branco nor the officers were injured.
A search warrant was executed on the truck, and detectives found a loaded .45-caliber semi-automatic pistol, a .30-30 lever-action rifle, about 1 1/2 ounces of crystal methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia, police said.
Branco is free on $191,000 bond, according to the state Department of Public Safety website.
And Jeffrey Locious Charley, 41, of Clarksville, Tenn., faces two first-degree sexual assault charges, plus kidnapping and fourth-degree sexual assault for an incident that allegedly took place in Hilo.
According to court documents, a 22-year-old woman acquainted with Charley told police that on the evening of May 16, Charley prevented her from leaving his Banyan Drive hotel room, grabbed her breasts without her consent and then performed two sexual acts on her without her permission.
The Tribune-Herald doesn’t identify alleged sex assault victims unless they choose to go public.
The first-degree sexual assault and kidnapping charges are Class A felonies. Prosecutors are seeking an extended prison term “for the protection of the public,” and Charley could be sentenced to life if convicted of multiple Class A felonies.
Documents indicate Charley has no prior felony convictions. A search of Hawaii court records found a DUI conviction in 2009, a dismissal of a DUI charge in 2006 and an acquittal on a domestic abuse charge in 2009.
He remains at HCCC in lieu of $62,000 bail.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
