A Maui man is now facing serious federal charges after being connected with the discovery of an improvised explosive device (IED) near an elementary school. The individual, 47-year-old Robert Francis Dumaran of Kahului, was ordered to be detained without bail following his initial appearance in the United States District Court, according to a statement by the U.S. Attorney's Office District of Hawaii.
The Maui Police Department first encountered the IED on July 23, located in the roadway by Kahului Elementary School. Detailed in the affidavit, the device, bearing Dumaran's fingerprints on its packing tape, included explosive powder, a battery, and shrapnel designed to harm. As Dumaran made his first court appearance, a preliminary hearing was set for August 27, amidst concerns for public safety.
While the federal complaint currently charges Dumaran with possessing an unregistered destructive device and attempting to damage property by means of explosives, these accusations remain unproven until he is possibly indicted and then convicted in court. It should be noted that if convicted, Dumaran could be sentenced to up to ten years in prison for the unregistered device and face a mandatory minimum of five years to up to 20 years on the explosives charge. The released information on the Department of Justice's website clearly states that the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Despite the current charges, the affidavit has also mentioned other incidents involving detonated IEDs in nearby areas, such as an exploded IED on Kaamana Street in Kula on August 7, and a car damaged by an IED explosion on August 8 in Pukalani. However, the complaint does not charge Dumaran connection with either events.
This ongoing investigation is a joint effort between the FBI and the Maui County Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Wayne Myers and Jonathan Slack have been tasked with the prosecution.
