A 15-year-old Kahului boy who vanished after being dropped off at school last week has been found safe. The Maui Police Department confirmed Friday afternoon that Kaikoa Maeda-Kalani, who had not been seen since Thursday morning, was located in good health, closing out a search that unfolded over roughly 24 hours in Central Maui.
A Report Filed by a Worried Family Member
According to Maui Now, a concerned family member reported Maeda-Kalani missing on August 20, prompting the Maui Police Department to open an investigation under report number 26-021470. The teen had last been seen around 7:20 a.m. that day being dropped off at his school in Kahului, and he did not attend any classes after 11 a.m., the outlet reported.
Police described Maeda-Kalani as standing about 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighing approximately 220 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a black long-sleeved shirt with an unknown design, light blue pants, and black shoes. Investigators noted he had neither a phone nor access to a vehicle, details that made the search for information from the public especially important as officers worked to retrace his movements.
Case Closed Within a Day
The resolution came quickly. At 3:09 p.m. Friday, the Maui Police Department updated the case to say Maeda-Kalani had been located safe and in good health, and the department thanked the community for its help, per the same account. The turnaround, from an initial family report to a confirmed safe recovery, took less than 24 hours.
That speed lines up with how Hawaii law directs police to handle these cases. Under Hawaii Revised Statutes § 577-27, agencies that receive a missing child report from a parent or guardian must immediately notify all on-duty officers, alert other county agencies, and log the case into the state's Juvenile Justice Information System, according to Justia Law. That statutory mandate helps explain why bulletins on missing minors in Maui County tend to move fast, both in reaching the public and in reaching a resolution.
A Statewide System Built for These Cases
Behind the scenes, the state's Missing Child Center Hawaii, established under Hawaii Revised Statutes § 28-121 within the Department of the Attorney General, serves as a clearinghouse coordinating county, state, and federal efforts on missing and runaway children, per the Hawaii Department of the Attorney General. State officials with that center have said roughly 2,000 children are reported missing across Hawaii every year, with the vast majority classified as runaways involving teens averaging 15 and 16 years old.
Hawaii also runs the MAILE AMBER Alert system, a statewide emergency notification framework named in memory of 6-year-old Maile Gilbert following her 1985 abduction and murder on Oahu, according to AMBER Advocate. Compiled federal and state data has placed Hawaii eighth in the nation for per-capita missing persons cases, with more than two-thirds of the state's missing child cases originating on Oahu.
Part of a Busy Month for Maui Police
Maeda-Kalani's case is one of several missing person searches the Maui Police Department has opened and closed in Kahului this month. The department also announced safe recoveries for 38-year-old David Lewis and 38-year-old Henry Maclure in August, both located safe after public bulletins were issued asking for the community's help.
Maui Police continue to ask anyone with information relevant to open cases to call the department's non-emergency dispatch line at 808-244-6400, while reserving 911 for active emergencies. The department's steady cadence of appeals and follow-up updates, this case included, has become a familiar rhythm in Central Maui as officers work through the roughly 2,000 juvenile reports filed statewide each year.
