Armed suspect denies guilt
The 37-year-old Mililani man charged with forcing his way into a Waipio home and firing a gun while trying to evade police entered a plea of not guilty in Circuit Court on Thursday.
Lance L.H. Yurong has been charged with first-degree burglary, auto theft, attempted auto theft, unauthorized entry into a motor vehicle, second-degree reckless endangering, being a felon in possession of a firearm and promotion of a dangerous drug.
Circuit Judge Richard Perkins set a trial date for the week of Oct. 1. Yurong was being held in lieu of $500,000 bail.
2 dead snakes found on Oahu
Two dead snakes have been turned over to Hawaii Department of Agriculture officials.
The state says a dead, 6-foot-long boa constrictor was found on a Central Oahu farm Tuesday by harvesting workers.
On Wednesday a guest at a Waikiki hotel visiting from Washington state found a dead, 6-inch-long garter snake in a carry-on bag and turned the carcass over to the front desk. The state says the snake appeared to have been long dead and dried.
4 redemption centers close
LIHUE >> Four bottle redemption centers on Kauai are temporarily closed because of financial problems.
The county public works department said that as of Wednesday the redemption centers that Kauai Community Recycling Services operated had closed, and when they would reopened wasn’t clear.
The enters are in Kekaha, Koloa, Kapaa and Kilauea.
Other redemption sites are still open.
Mayor is safe, daughter says
WAILUKU >> Maui County officials are relieved to hear their mayor is safe in Taiwan, which was hit by a typhoon.
County spokesman Rod Antone says officials were nervous when they heard about Typhoon Saola bearing down near Taiwan, where Mayor Alan Arakawa is visiting with a delegation of U.S. mayors.
The typhoon hit northern Taiwan on Wednesday. That day, Arakawa was to visit Mayor Yeh Shou-Shan of Pingtung County, with which Maui has a sister-county relationship. Pingtung County is at the southern end of the country.
The county issued a news release Tuesday saying officials were trying to get in touch with Arakawa.
Antone says while county officials haven’t been able to reach him directly, Arakawa’s daughter Jodi informed them her father called from Taiwan Wednesday night to say he and his wife are fine.
Arakawa is expected to return to Maui on Saturday.
