MEDIA RELEASE

Hilo Exchange Club President Andy Iwashita presents an ‘Officer of the Month’ award to Officer Brian Souki

The Aloha Exchange Club of East Hawaiʻi recognized Officer Brian Souki on Thursday (August 27) as the East Hawaiʻi “Officer of the Month” for August

Souki, a 10-year veteran of the Police Department, was honored for three unrelated felony arrests he made in Puna during the month of July.

• On July 5 Souki responded to an unoccupied home in the Hawaiian Paradise Park subdivision that had been ransacked. Several items had been stolen and others, including a vehicle, had been damaged. While speaking to residents of the area as part of his investigation, he spotted items in a garage that were similar to those stolen from the victim’s house. As a result, he was able to identify a 23-year-old man and five juveniles as suspects. The adult was arrested for burglary and unauthorized entry of a motor vehicle.
• On July 8, while investigating a theft case in the Orchidland Estates subdivision, Souki noticed a man and woman sleeping in a car. He recognized the man as someone wanted on outstanding bench warrants and determined that the car had been stolen from a parking lot in Hilo two months earlier. After arresting him, Souki visually scanned the inside of the vehicle and spotted drug paraphernalia consistent with meth use, leading eventually to additional arrests for drug offenses.
• On July 17, while patrolling in the Fern Forest subdivision, Souki observed an 18-year-old man he recognized as being wanted for punching a man who confronted him a week earlier while the suspect was leaving a vacant house carrying a big filled with 11 pounds of copper pipe. When Souki attempted to speak with the suspect, the man fled into the bushes and tossed a fanny pack into the ferns. After catching up with the suspect and detaining him, Souki recovered the fanny pack, which contained 17.6 grams of dried marijuana, a glass smoking pipe with meth residue and a cut straw. The man was arrested for theft, assault, promoting a detrimental drug, promoting a dangerous drug and possessing drug paraphernalia.

Acting Sergeant Nelson Acob, who nominated Souki for the honor, said he “truly demonstrates” the Police Department’s core values.

“Officer Souki is a diligent, observant, hardworking officer who is determined to follow any leads in identifying a suspect and solving a case,” Acob wrote in nomination papers.

As “Officer of the Month,” Souki is eligible for “Officer of the Year.”

The East Hawaiʻi “Officer of the Month” award is a project of the Aloha Exchange Club of East Hawaiʻi.