A 44-year-old homeless man was indicted on a charge of murder by an Oahu grand jury Tuesday after his 50-year-old girlfriend’s bullet-riddled body was found Sept. 13 in a Manoa storm drain.
Gibran K. Copeland was arrested Friday near his tent that he lived in at a homeless encampment in a storm drain near 1215 Hunakai St. in Kahala.
He was indicted Tues- day on charges of second- degree murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a separate felony in connection with the death of Christina Baca, 50, who also was homeless.
He is being held without bail at the Oahu Community Correctional Center.
Baca and Copeland dated for about one to two years before her decomposing body was found Sept. 13. She was allegedly shot multiple times in her head, torso and limbs.
“This tragic case is a reminder of the need to address domestic violence in our community,” said Prosecuting Attorney Steve Alm in a statement. “These acts of violence have no place in Hawai‘i and we will do everything to secure a conviction in this case,” Alm added.
Copeland faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole and faces extended sentencing as “a multiple offender which would carry a sentence of life without parole,” according to the Department of the Prosecuting Attorney.
Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Dwane I. Tegman is handling the case.
In August, Baca told a witness that “her boyfriend and/or her boyfriend’s friends were going to kill her and that she was being followed by them,” according to state court records.
The witness told police he ignored her because he thought she was on drugs or drinking and known to act paranoid.
Police used surveillance footage from the University of Hawaii and two public self-storage businesses where Copeland rented space to pull together the evidence needed to arrest and charge him with Baca’s death.
Detectives with the Honolulu Police Department’s homicide detail canvassed homeless encampments to find witnesses and friends of Copeland and Baca.
On Sept. 18 at about 3:40 p.m., Copeland was interviewed by police at HPD’s headquarters.
He allegedly turned over his mobile phone and password and consented to a search of it for information related to Baca, according to state court records, then asked detectives for an attorney.
A witness who attended Kaiser High School with Copeland told police that on Sept. 8 he ran into him at the Zippy’s in Kahala.
Copeland allegedly told the witness that “Christina” made his campsite a mess and did not clean up after herself. Copeland commented that he was the only one who cleaned. Copeland allegedly told the witness he had a gun in his backpack.
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>> If you or someone you know is affected by domestic violence, you can call the Domestic Violence Action Center at 808-531-3771 or the DVAC toll-free helpline at 800-690-6200.
