Photo: Honolulu Police Dept.
A man facing eviction from a high-end neighborhood near Hawaii’s iconic Diamond Head stabbed his landlady, fatally shot two officers and sparked a fire that destroyed at least seven homes, with the suspect and two others possibly lost in the rubble, say police.
Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell described Sunday’s events in his city as an “unprecedented tragedy,” reportedHonolulu News Now.
The two officers killed were among those called to the scene after the suspect, 69-year-old Jeroslav “Jerry” Hanel, used a three-pronged garden tool to stab the leg of the landlady who had come to evict him just after 9 a.m., Honolulu Police Chief Susan Ballard said at anews conference.
The landlady, Louis Cane, dialed 911 to summon officers, who arrived to find “thick black smoke coming out of the home,” Ballard said.
Gunfire erupted from the home as approaching officers walked up the driveway, striking officers Tiffany Enriquez, a seven-year department veteran, and Kaulike Kalama, who had been a member of the force for seven years.
“They were like my kids,” Ballard told reporters, choking back her emotions. “I know each one of them very personally.”
Hanel is believed to have set and died in the fire that very quickly spread to other structures. Two other people, both women, were missing and unaccounted for after the blaze, according to authorities, who did not immediately identify them.
Jaroslav “Jerry” Hanel.Honolulu Police Department
“It will likely take days to process the crime scene, including recovery of any remains,” said Ballard on Sunday. “At this time there are three people who are unaccounted for, including the suspect.”
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Hanel did not have a permit to own guns, said Ballard.
“On behalf of the men and women of the police department,” she said, “our deepest condolences go out to the families of officers Tiffany Enriquez and Kaulike Kalama.”
Officers “knew of the suspect and had responded to that residence on several occasions and were aware of him,” Ballard said, “and he had never acted out with the officers.” Hanel was arrested last year formisuse of 911, reports KHON.
source: people.com
