A 41-year-old man pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges involving a brazen home invasion earlier this month in Kaneohe.
Frank J. Moreno, also known as Frank Jesse James Moreno, appeared for arraignment at Circuit Court via closed-circuit video link from the Oahu Community Correctional Center. Judge Colette Garibaldi confirmed his $100,000 bail and set trial for August.
He was indicted June 14 by an Oahu grand jury for first-degree burglary and unauthorized entry of a dwelling in connection with a June 6 home invasion on Waikalualoko Loop, where police said Moreno and two other men forced their way inside a home occupied by two women. One of the men brandished a firearm and punched one of the women.
Moreno and the two other men fled after a retired Marine Corps sergeant major who was in his home office in the rear of the property heard the women’s screams, confronted the suspects and called out for help to an off-duty police officer who lives nearby.
Police said the Marine veteran and the officer captured Moreno. The other suspects remain at large.
Mumps outbreak grows by 15 Oahu cases
State health officials said Thursday that this year’s mumps outbreak has climbed to 119 cases after 15 more people on Oahu were confirmed to have the disease.
Of the 15 new cases, eight are adults and seven are children, none of whom required hospitalization, Department of Health officials said. All 15 are recovering, they added.
They said they continue to investigate new cases and expect the outbreak to continue on Oahu. The virus is highly contagious and spread through coughing, sneezing and sharing cups and utensils.
Anyone who suspects they have the mumps should stay home and call their doctor. Symptoms include swollen or tender salivary glands, fever, tiredness and muscle aches, health officials said.
Hirono plans to run again after rib surgery
U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono will undergo surgery Tuesday to remove a lesion on her seventh rib where a second tumor was found by doctors, Hirono told KITV’s Paula Akana in an interview that aired Thursday night.
Hirono, who was diagnosed with stage 4 kidney cancer and had a kidney removed last month, said she expects to make a full recovery following a day or two at the Medstar Georgetown University Hospital, where the surgery is taking place.
The rib surgery is being undertaken now “because her cancer is less aggressive than originally thought,” Hirono’s staff said in a news release following the interview.
The 69-year-old also told Akana that she is “definitely running for re-election” in fall 2018.
Hirono said she ignored an initial sign that she was ill. “For a while I felt this weird, kind of a tightness sensation and a little bit of pain,” she said. “And I just thought it was a muscle spasm or something, and I ignored it.”
She said she feels fortunate that the cancer was found on an X-ray taken in preparation for eye surgery.
Maui
Filmfest lauds actress with honor ‘for carving a path of distinction’
The 2017 Maui Film Festival opened Wednesday in Wailea with actor Connie Britton (“Nashville,” “Friday Night Lights”) honored with the Navigator Award “for carving a path of distinction through the turbulent waters of the entertainment industry.” Also on hand were Freida Pinto (“Slumdog Millionaire”) and Karen Gillan (“Guardians of the Galaxy”), who are due to receive the Shining Star and Rising Star awards, respectively. The Maui Film Festival runs through Sunday with screenings at three venues. Visit mauifilmfestival.com.
