Farm OKs deal to resolve pay complaint

A Waipahu farm has agreed to settle a Department of Labor complaint that charged the farm underpaid its workers by hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Fat Law’s Farm, herb and vegetable farm, will pay workers more than $430,000 in back wages and penalties to settle the federal claim.

The settlement states that Fat Law’s violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by paying employees no more than $5 per hour, by withholding overtime pay and by neglecting to keep proper employment records.

Kathryn Xian, the founder of the Pacific Alliance to Stop Slavery, said her organization became aware of abuses at the farm more than two years ago when migrant workers at the farm sought help.

The Honolulu group, which combats human trafficking, then urged federal authorities to investigate. 

Associated Press

NEIGHBOR ISLANDS

Maui bicyclist dies after truck strikes him

A bicyclist died after being hit by a pickup truck in Kihei on Saturday, Maui police said.

The victim was identified as Karl Hagen, 61, of Kihei.

Maui police said Hagen was on a bicycle heading north on Piilani Highway when a pickup driven by a 28-year-old Kula man drifted into the bike lane and hit him.

Hagen was transported to Maui Memorial Medical Center, where he died.

The collision occurred at 1:12 p.m. just north of Kanani Road. Traffic along Piilani Highway was stalled for several hours.

Witness recalls alleged gunman firing 20 shots

An alleged gunman fired more than 20 shots into the air in the parking lot of King Kamehameha’s Kona Beach Hotel on April 5, a witness testified at the suspect’s preliminary hearing last week.

Raymond Lee Robinson, 39, is charged with terroristic threatening, reckless endangering, reckless driving, criminal property damage and five firearms charges, the Hawaii Tribune-Herald reported. His bail is set at $123,000.

Security guard Justin Tripp, who was manning the parking booth at the resort around noon, said the shots came from inside a red Chevy Camaro.

"I see (the car) parked sideways, and someone put their hand out the window and started firing a gun," he said. "What I could count was 20-plus (shots) altogether."

Police officer Coley Rowe testified he and two other officers used vehicles for cover.

"As we approached, I could see the red Camaro parked facing the ocean and the sound of gunfire was coming from the vehicle," Rowe testified. "He had a window rolled down and was screaming, ‘Anyone who approaches me is going to die.’"

The hearing was continued to April 22.

Star-Advertiser staff