Police have arrested and charged a 32-year-old Hilo man for assault for allegedly severely beating a 62-year-old Hilo man.
Wallace Manuarii Tahutini is charged with two counts of first-degree assault and a single count of second-degree assault for the incident, which police said took place late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning in the 300 block of Manono Street in Hilo.
Police responded Wednesday morning and found the victim lying in the back of his van in a Manono Street parking lot.
Officers said the man had both eyes swollen shut, a swollen forehead and a large laceration on the bridge of his nose. The victim remains hospitalized in stable condition with serious head and upper-body injuries, police said.
Police say the man identified Tahutini, who was arrested without incident in a downtown parking lot, as the assailant.
Tahutini’s bail was set at $120,000, and he remains in custody pending his initial court appearance scheduled for this afternoon.
Anyone with information regarding the incident is asked to call the police nonemergency number at (808) 935-3311 or Crime Stoppers at (808) 961-8300.