Man arrested for allegedly stealing Tribune-Herald van

A 23-year-old Hilo man has been arrested and charged for allegedly stealing a van early Saturday from the Hawaii Tribune-Herald’s production facility in downtown Hilo.

About 11:26 a.m., a Tribune-Herald employee reported that the newspaper’s van was stolen from the premises sometime between 1 a.m. and 3 a.m. that morning.

A little after 4 a.m. on Sunday, an employee of the newspaper observed the stolen van parked in the parking lot of another business in the 1300 block of Kinoole Street. Officers located Dylan Riley Balangatan seated in the driver’s seat of the stolen van, with its engine running.

Balangatan was arrested for unauthorized control of a propelled vehicle (auto theft), and was transported to the Hilo cellblock.

After conferring with prosecutors Monday, detectives charged Balangatan with first-degree unauthorized control of a propelled vehicle and first-degree theft. His bail was set at $35,000.

Balangatan made his initial court appearance Tuesday. Hilo District Judge Jeffrey Hawk freed him on supervised release — a form of cashless bail — over the objection of Deputy Prosecutor Georgia Berrenberg.

Hawk ordered Balangatan to return to court for a preliminary hearing on March 27.

Balangatan also has a scheduled hearing today in Hilo Circuit Court on an unrelated felony theft case from 2023.

Those with information regarding this crime are asked to contact Detective Paul Mangus at (808) 961-2386 or paul.mangus@hawaiicounty.gov.