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Records show Gerard Puana’s cellphone not in Kahala before or after alleged mailbox theft, FBI expert testifies

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GEORGE F. LEE / Feb. 12, 2015

Gerard Puana is the uncle of former city Deputy Prosecutor Katherine Kealoha. Katherine and Louis Kealoha are accused of trying to frame Puana for the 2013 theft of the mailbox and lying about their actions to federal investigators.

An analysis of Gerard Puana’s cellphone records in the hours before and after the 2013 theft of the mailbox of Louis and Katherine Kealoha showed that two calls made from his phone used a cell tower near his Wilhelmina Rise residence, not the one in the Kahala area where the Kealohas lived at the time, an FBI agent testified today.

Edwin Nam, an expert in examining cellphone records, said the first call, made at 2:18 p.m. June 21 of that year used the cell tower that serves the area including Puana’s home.

A second call at 8:25 the next morning used the same tower, according to Nam.

No other calls were made from that phone between those times, precluding Nam from being able to assess the location of the phone in those hours.

The theft happened on June 21 just before midnight.

Nam was testifying today for the government on the seventh day of the conspiracy trial of the Kealohas and three former and current police officers.

They are accused of trying to frame Puana, Katherine Kealoha’s uncle, for the 2013 theft of the mailbox and lying about their actions to federal investigators.

Nam also examined the late Friday and early Saturday calling records of Puana’s phone three weeks before and a week after the theft and found similar patterns.

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