A months-long probe into an alleged Honolulu check-fraud ring has led to two arrests, a third suspect on the loose, and more than a million dollars in questioned transactions, according to state officials.
Prosecutors say 41-year-old Felix Savoy, who also uses the name Felix Tigilau, and 75-year-old Baron Yamabe were taken into custody in connection with what they describe as a $1.2 million fraudulent check operation. A third suspect, 78-year-old Ursula Ramos, is wanted on an outstanding $5,000 arrest warrant. In all, state prosecutors filed 54 counts of forgery, theft, and attempted theft tied to checks allegedly manufactured and deposited in the summer of 2024. The case is the product of a lengthy investigation by the Attorney General’s Investigations Division.
In a news release, the Hawaiʻi Department of the Attorney General said special agents arrested Savoy on a $1,000,000 warrant and Yamabe on a $100,000 warrant, and that they were charged through the department’s Criminal Justice Division. Attorney General Anne Lopez called the findings unsettling, saying, “The scope of the alleged fraud and the repeated conduct uncovered through this investigation are deeply troubling.” The department added that it intends to seek restitution for people and businesses that suffered losses, and identified Deputy Attorney General Adrian Dhakhwa as the prosecutor on the case.
According to Hawaii News Now, prosecutors allege the defendants created and deposited bogus checks using account information that was accessed without authorization, with the total climbing to about $1.2 million between June and August 2024. Investigators believe other victims may still be out there. Anyone who suspects they were hit by similar fraudulent deposits is urged to contact the Attorney General’s Investigations Division at (808) 586-1240. Officials describe the current case as part of a broader, ongoing investigation into an organized check-fraud operation.
Earlier arrests linked to the same operation
Earlier arrests in August 2024 had already tied Tigilau and Yamabe to an alleged $1.5 million forgery scheme. That earlier inquiry named additional suspected co-conspirators and suggested the operation stretched over multiple months. Prosecutors now say the story did not end with those first arrests, and that new investigative leads continued to surface, leading to the most recent round of charges.
Charges, penalties and what comes next
The new case is filed as State v. Felix Tigilau, et al., case number 1CPC-26-0000873, according to the Attorney General’s office. Arraignment and plea will be scheduled in the First Circuit Court. Theft and Attempted Theft in the First Degree are Class B felonies that carry potential penalties of up to 10 years in prison and fines of up to $25,000. Second-degree forgery and related offenses are punishable by up to five years in prison and fines up to $10,000. The department says it will push for restitution for victims, and confirms that Deputy Attorney General Adrian Dhakhwa is handling the prosecution. All three defendants remain presumed innocent unless and until they are found guilty in court.
In the meantime, officials are urging banks, businesses, and residents to comb through recent deposits and account activity, safeguard personal financial data, and promptly report any suspicious transactions to their financial institutions and to the Attorney General’s Investigations Division. Anyone with information that could assist investigators is asked to call (808) 586-1240 and hold onto any records that might help piece together the full extent of the alleged scheme.
