MEDIA RELEASE

Isaac Rosa

A Puna man has been charged with burglary and drug offenses, and police are asking for the public’s help in identifying possible accomplices.

On Thursday (September 10), a 57-year-old Hilo man reported that when he returned to his home on Puueo Mauka Road in the Wainaku area, he saw a Nissan Pathfinder in his driveway with three unknown persons standing next to it. The strangers got into the sports-utility vehicle and fled, striking the victim’s pickup truck while he was still in it, and then drove into downtown Hilo.

The Pathfinder was later located on the sidewalk of Keawe Street facing against the direction of traffic of the one-way street near the intersection with Furneaux Lane. Three males were seen running from the area of the abandoned SUV. Officers located two of them, 22-year-old Isaac A. M. Rosa of Mountain View and a 16-year-old boy.

Rosa was initially arrested and charged on a warrant for violating terms of supervised release and was held without bail on that offense. He was in possession of property belonging to the burglary victim and a clear zip packet containing a crystalline substance suspected to be methamphetamine. The juvenile was arrested on an unrelated juvenile warrant of arrest

Both suspects were taken to the Hilo police station while officers from the Area I Criminal Investigations Section continued the investigation. The juvenile was later released to the jurisdiction of Family Court, while Rosa was held in the police cellblock. He made his initial appearance in District Court on Friday (September 11) on the warrant and then was taken to Hawaiʻi Community Correctional Center while the other investigation continued.

Police executed a search warrant on the Pathfinder, which had been reported stolen. From inside, they recovered items belonging to the burglary victim.

Later Friday, Rosa was charged with burglary, theft, promotion of a dangerous drug and possession of drug paraphernalia. His bail on those offenses was set at $55,000. He remained at HCCC until his initial court appearance on Monday (September 14).

Police believe other persons were involved in this burglary and ask anyone who knows their identity or anything else about this case to call the Area I Criminal Investigations Section at 961-2272.

Tipsters who prefer to remain anonymous may call the islandwide Crime Stoppers number at 961-8300 and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000. Crime Stoppers is a volunteer program run by ordinary citizens who want to keep their community safe. Crime Stoppers doesn’t record calls or subscribe to caller ID. All Crime Stoppers information is kept confidential.