Honolulu police arrested a 15-year-old boy in connection with the death of his 36-year-old mother in Waimanalo.
Shanell Moku, a mother of five, died Thursday night of blunt force injuries to the head and face, according to the medical examiner’s office. The death was classified as a homicide.
Police arrested Moku’s son on suspicion of second-degree murder, and he remains in custody as police continue their investigation.
In July, another Waimanalo teenager was arrested for stabbing his foster mother to death.
At about 8:45 p.m. Thursday, officers were dispatched after a report of an unknown person calling for help. When police arrived, they found Moku unresponsive at her Bell Street home.
She was transported to a nearby hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Police located Moku’s son nearby at about 9:15 p.m. and arrested him.
Family members on Friday declined comment. They asked for privacy.
Neighbors in the tight-knit community said they were devastated and shaken by Moku’s death. They described her as a devoted mother to her children — the youngest is a toddler and her oldest is in college.
Moku grew up on Bell Street, and neighbors said she owned a portable toilet rental business called Aloha Potty’s.
"She was a really nice lady," said Samantha Pauso, who lives down the street from Moku.
"She was very involved with her kids," she added, noting Moku went to every baseball game her children played in.
Pauso said she heard sirens near her home Thursday night. "It’s very unfortunate," she said.
Another neighbor, who declined to give her name, said, "It’s tragic and it was a total shock."
"It’s just too close to home, literally," she said.
She recalled speaking to Moku about her son when he was involved in a moped accident within the past two years. "Her kids meant everything to her," the neighbor said.
She further described Moku as a fun-loving and easygoing person. She was laid-back and enjoyed life, she added. "She was a really good person."
The neighbor said her son heard an argument coming from Moku’s home Thursday night before police and the fire department arrived. According to a KITV news report, the 15-year-old boy was a student at Kaiser High School and a member of the football team.
Area residents said this is yet another tragic incident that occurred in the community in recent months.
In July, a 16-year-old boy was charged with second-degree murder in connection with the fatal stabbing of his 52-year-old foster mother, Jolyn Kipapa.
The boy’s name wasn’t released because he is a juvenile.
The stabbing occurred at Kipapa’s home in Sherwood Forest at Waimanalo Bay Beach Park where her husband, Kurt, was the park caretaker.
The couple cared for more than 20 foster children in 11 years.
Kipapa became a foster mother when her former classmate from Castle High School asked her to baby-sit her five children. The friend, addicted to crystal methamphetamine, never returned.
