MEDIA RELEASE

Jantzen-James Mata

A Hilo man has been charged with four offenses after being found in a stolen car.

On Monday (July 13), Puna Patrol officers responded to a report of a sedan parked in the roadway on Road C in the Hawaiian Acres subdivision in Puna. When they arrived, the car’s engine was running and its occupant was passed out with drug paraphernalia on the seat next to him.

Officers determined that the car had been stolen from Hilo on Saturday (July 11).

The occupant, 30-year-old Jantzen-James Mata, was arrested and taken to the Hilo police cellblock while detectives from the Area I Criminal Investigations Section and Vice Section continued the investigation. The investigation revealed that Mata was also a possible suspect in another auto theft. In that case, a sports-utility vehicle was stolen from Kurtistown on June 28.

At 6:13 p.m. Tuesday (July 14), Mata was charged with second-degree theft, unauthorized control of a propelled vehicle, promoting a dangerous drug and possessing drug paraphernalia. His bail was set at $40,000.

He remained in the cellblock until his initial court appearance on Wednesday (July 15).