Keaau man in custody for crime spree in HPP

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A judge on Tuesday maintained bail at $198,000 for a 38-year-old Keaau man accused of a number of property, drug and violent offenses in Hawaiian Paradise Park.

Hilo District Judge Jeffrey Hawk also ordered Brandon Blye to return to court today for a preliminary hearing.

According to police, the charges stem from several incidents between Sept. 1 and Sunday in HPP. He was identified as the suspect from multiple surveillance videos, police said.

Incidents include an assault and attempted sex assault on an HPP woman Sept 1. The victim reported her assailant grabbed her hair and slammed her head and face against a wall, dragged her to the ground and continued the assault.

Blye also was responsible for a separate forcible break-in and burglary at HPP the same day, police said.

Police also responded Sunday to a reported burglary in progress in HPP. The homeowner, who wasn’t home at the time, called police to report seeing a man on video surveillance attempting to break into the victim’s home and damaging the surveillance system.

As officers arrived on scene and began searching for the suspect, a man was seen hiding in a storage shed. When officers approached, the man fled into a wooded area. Officers chased the suspect. However, due to the heavy vegetation and poor lighting conditions, they weren’t able to immediately locate him.

Upon review of the video surveillance, officers identified Blye as the suspect and later apprehended him.

Blye is charged with attempted first-degree sex assault, first-degree burglary, attempted first-degree burglary, second-degree robbery, second-degree theft, second-degree assault, second-degree tampering, fourth-degree property damage, third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug, marijuana possession, possession of drug paraphernalia and habitual property crime.

The most serious offense, attempted first-degree sex assault, is a Class A felony punishable by up to 20 years imprisonment.

Blye remains in custody at Hawaii Community Correctional Center.

Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.