MEDIA RELEASE

Big Island police have initiated a coroner’s inquest investigation in connection with a 29-year-old man whose body was found Monday morning after he was swept out to sea Saturday afternoon.

The victim has been identified as Ceasare Moses of Pāhala.

At 2:45 p.m. Saturday (June 2) Ka’ū officers and Fire Department personnel responded to a possible drowning off South Point near the lighthouse. Upon arrival, officers learned that Moses had been washed out to sea while throwing a fishing net with a friend.

The case was originally classified as a public accident.

Fire Department and Coast Guard personnel searched for the missing man over the weekend using sea craft and helicopters but were unable to locate him.

At 6:50 a.m. Monday, Fire Department personnel in a helicopter located Moses’ body on rocks along the shoreline in the South Point area.

An autopsy has been ordered to determine the exact cause of death.