A 36-year-old man accused of clubbing a stranger with a blunt weapon and robbing him in downtown Honolulu this past Sunday has already served a decade in prison for a different violent robbery — and he was still waiting to be sentenced in a separate burglary case when police say he struck again.
Kevin Mercado-Nardo was charged Thursday with second-degree robbery, and his bail was set at $100,000, according to Hawaii News Now. Police say Mercado-Nardo struck a man with a blunt weapon at about 9:20 p.m. this past Sunday and took items from him before running away, the station reports.
A Familiar Pattern From a 2015 Kailua Case
Court records show Mercado-Nardo was sentenced to 10 years in prison after he and John Vea pleaded guilty in connection with the robbery of Keolu Liquor Store, per the same account. That case dates back to October 7, 2015, when police said two men and a woman entered the Kailua store at the Enchanted Lake Shopping Center around 4:10 p.m., according to a separate Hawaii News Now report from that year. Mercado-Nardo and Vea, then 25 and 30 years old respectively, were indicted for first-degree robbery.
During that 2015 incident, police said Mercado-Nardo put the store's owner in a choke hold when the owner tried to stop the suspects. Officials said at the time that Vea had attempted to use bolt cutters to cut a lock and chain off a gambling machine inside the store, while a female suspect allegedly locked the door so the owner's wife could not run for help.
Pending Burglary Case Adds Another Layer
Beyond the Kailua conviction, Mercado-Nardo was already awaiting sentencing in another case at the time of Sunday's alleged robbery. He pleaded no contest on October 2, 2026, to charges relating to a burglary at Kaumakapili Church on King Street, the report states. He faces an extended prison term of 10 years when he is sentenced in that case on January 20, 2027.
If convicted in the downtown Honolulu robbery, Mercado-Nardo could also face an extended sentence because of his prior conviction and the victim's age, the article notes. That outcome depends on the outcome of the current case, which remains pending.
