A 23-year-old man followed a 24-year-old woman and a 77-year-old woman into the underground garage of a Diamond Head-area apartment building, confronted them, and chased the younger woman before allegedly trying to force her into his truck, police said. Neighbors converged on the scene near Coconut Avenue and helped the woman break free, and the suspect allegedly elbowed the older woman in the face before speeding off. He was later found and arrested, and he remains in custody on kidnapping and assault allegations.
According to khon2.com, the man went inside the garage and confronted the two women before chasing down the younger one. The 77-year-old woman told the station that the suspect planned to put the younger woman in his truck and take her away, though he never got that far. The 77-year-old woman said the women did not know the man, and the confrontation appears to have started and ended within the garage and the street outside.
Neighbors Rush In As Struggle Unfolds
As the struggle spilled toward the suspect's vehicle, people living nearby noticed what was happening and ran toward the garage. Several people in the neighborhood converged on the scene, and the 24-year-old broke free, per Hawaii News Now. Police say the suspect elbowed the 77-year-old in the face. The station's report also says bystanders moved in to intervene.
With the younger woman free and neighbors closing in, the suspect got into his truck and sped off backward, going mauka on Coconut Avenue, the same report states.
Suspect Spotted Running Naked Before Arrest
About three hours later, police said a suspicious man matching the suspect's description was seen running naked near 22nd Avenue and Diamond Head Road, according to the same Hawaii News Now account.
He was arrested for kidnapping and second-degree assault, the station's report notes, and khon2.com separately confirmed that the suspect remains in custody, with kidnapping and assault charges pending.
How Hawaii Law Defines the Alleged Crime
Under Hawaii law, a person commits the offense of kidnapping if the person intentionally or knowingly restrains another person with intent to carry out one of several specific purposes laid out in the statute, according to the Hawaii State Legislature. The statute lists those purposes in subsections (a) through (g).
This is not the only recent kidnapping case to rattle a Honolulu neighborhood. In April, Honolulu police arrested a 33-year-old man on suspicion of kidnapping a 24-year-old woman in Aiea, with officers alleging he assaulted his girlfriend, forced her back into his vehicle and drove off with her inside, the Star-Advertiser reported at the time. That suspect was arrested at 5:11 a.m. on suspicion of felony kidnapping on Wai Nani Way in Waikiki.
A state crime-data release from September, cited by the Governor of Hawaii, noted that reported kidnapping offenses statewide fell 6.8% compared with 2024, though the underlying totals behind that figure were not included in the release.
