Plea change nixed in concert blunder lawsuit ADVERTISING Plea change nixed in concert blunder lawsuit HONOLULU (AP) — A man accused of scamming the University of Hawaii of $200,000 for a Stevie Wonder concert that never happened is no longer
Plea change nixed in concert blunder lawsuit
HONOLULU (AP) — A man accused of scamming the University of Hawaii of $200,000 for a Stevie Wonder concert that never happened is no longer planning to change his plea.
Marc Hubbard was scheduled to change his plea Tuesday. But court records show there instead is a pretrial conference scheduled for next week.
He pleaded not guilty in 2013 to a wire fraud charge.
Authorities say the North Carolina concert promoter claimed he had connections to secure Wonder for an athletics fundraiser. The school paid a $200,000 deposit, began selling tickets and then learned neither Wonder nor his representatives authorized a show.
Court records say Hubbard pleaded guilty in South Carolina and New York to wire fraud and conspiracy charges. He’s also facing sentencing in Pennsylvania.
Mokulele to end operations out of Kalaeloa Airport
HONOLULU (AP) — After only two years of service, Mokulele Airlines will end its service out of Kalaeloa Airport in southwest Oahu.
Big Island-based Mokulele operated its last flight out of Kalaeloa on Sept. 6, ending its four flights a day to Molokai, with a connection to Maui.
Mokulele CEO Ron Hansen said Monday the decision to end operations came after two years of monthly losses.
“I don’t really have any regrets about trying to fly from there, but we lost over six figures at Kalaeloa in just over two years,” he said. “Flying around empty airplanes is not cheap.”
Hansen purchased the Kona-based carrier from go! parent Mesa Air Group Inc. in November 2011 and began service July 1, 2014, from Kalaeloa, which was the former Barbers Point Naval Air Station.
“We’ve been profitable for the nearly five years since I owned the company, but Kalaeloa was lowering the profits,” Hansen said.
Mokulele still operates out of Honolulu International Airport as well as seven other airports throughout the state. The airline is the third-largest in Hawaii and has a fleet of nine-seat Cessna Grand Caravan turboprops.
Mokulele also began flights on the mainland in May, with service between Imperial County Airport near El Centro, Calif., and Los Angeles under a two-year federally subsidized Essential Air Service Contract. The airline will begin service Oct. 7 between Santa Maria, Calif., and Los Angeles under a community-subsidized contract.
