A 21-year-old Pahoa man pleaded not guilty Monday to two counts of attempted murder for a machete attack last month in a housing complex just mauka of the University of Hawaii at Hilo. Hilo Circuit Judge ordered Atkinson Nakashima to stand trial at 8 a.m. June 1. Nakashima, who is free on $100,000 bail, was accompanied at his arraignment by court-appointed defense attorney Christopher Bridges and Chuukese language interpreter Lesther Muritok. Deputy Prosecutor Jack Matsukawa estimated the trial would take six to eight weeks. Nakashima waived his right to be tried within 180 days. Nakashima is accused of slashing a 21-year-old Hilo man, Tanielu Daniel Aiava, in the neck with a machete during an early morning confrontation Oct. 18 in the basketball court area of Hale Kawili Apartments, also known as ASH Housing. Aiava was hospitalized after reportedly suffering a laceration about 10-inches long and an inch deep. He’s since been released. According to a court document filed by police, an emergency room physician at Hilo Medical Center said Aiava sustained “serious bodily injury to include permanent disfigurement.” Subscribers follow the link for the full story.
Posted on: Tue, 18 Nov 2014 21:30:15 +0000
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