Police seek witnesses to officer-involved traffic crash

Police are seeking potential witnesses to an early morning single-vehicle traffic collision involving a taxpayer-subsidized police vehicle driven by an off-duty officer.

Shortly after 1:40 a.m. Sunday, officers responded to a crash at the intersection of Kekuanaoa Street and Kilauea Avenue in Hilo.

According to police, the off-duty officer lost control of a 2015 Dodge two-door sedan while trying to negotiate a right turn from Kekuanaoa onto Kilauea. The vehicle then struck a traffic light pole and hedges on the shoulder of Kilauea.

Police say the officer, a 12-year veteran, wasn’t injured in the incident.

The investigation caused a temporary road closure Sunday afternoon for about three-hours as police combed the traffic scene.

Acting Assistant Police Chief Kenneth Quiocho said he couldn’t identify the officer and didn’t say whether police suspect alcohol was involved in the crash.

“We want to talk to anyone who saw the crash or who saw how (the officer) was driving beforehand,” Quiocho said. “We hold our officers to a higher standard, and we want to get to the bottom of what occurred.”

Police are still investigating to determine whether criminal charges are warranted, and the Office of Professional Standards — the department’s internal affairs unit — has initiated an administrative investigation into the matter.

Any potential criminal charges in the incident are expected to be sent to prosecutors for review.

The department’s administrative investigation, which is separate from the criminal investigation, will result in disciplinary action should there be any policy or procedure violations, police said.

Anyone with information relating to this incident is asked to contact Detective Jeremy Kubojiri at (808) 961-2378 or jeremy.kubojiri@hawaiicounty.gov.