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Man charged in fatal stabbing of estranged wife at Wailuku supermarket

Leila Fujimori
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ASSOCIATED PRESS

A man watches the scene of a stabbing, Tuesday, April 19, 2016 at the Foodland Kehalani in Wailuku, Hawaii. Police say a man was arrested in connection with the stabbing of three people at the Maui supermarket that left one woman dead.

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ASSOCIATED PRESS

This undated photo provided by the County of Maui shows Stephen Schmidt. The Maui Police Department said Schmidt was arrested and a woman is dead after an alleged stabbing of three people at a Maui supermarket on Tuesday, April 19, 2016.

Maui authorities today charged a 45-year-old Kahului man who allegedly fatally stabbed his 24-year-old estranged wife with a knife Tuesday evening at a Wailuku supermarket and allegedly injured two shoppers who tried to intervene.

Stephen B. Schmidt was charged with first-degree murder, and two counts of second-degree attempted murder. His bail was set at $3 million.

Police said Schmidt started arguing with a man who accompanied his estranged wife at the Kehalani Foodland Store on 370 Kehalani Village Drive.

After a brief struggle with the man, Schmidt allegedly stabbed his wife, Kehau Farias Schmidt, with a knife, police said.

A 53-year-old Wailuku man tried to intervene, but Schmidt allegedly stabbed him, police said. A 34-year-old man, James Reeves, then attempted to stop him, but was also stabbed in the lung.

(The man who was accompanying the woman was not stabbed, police said.)

All three were taken to the Maui Memorial Medical Center, where the woman later died.

Both men are in stable condition and are being treated for their injuries, police said Wednesday.

Schmidt fled the store before patrol officers arrived at about 6:13 p.m. Police pursued him to a home on Molokai Hema Street, where they found and arrested him, police said.

He was taken Tuesday night to the Wailuku Police Station, where he is currently being held, police said today.

16 responses to “Man charged in fatal stabbing of estranged wife at Wailuku supermarket”

  1. lespark says:

    Whoa, something doesn’t add up.

  2. BigOpu says:

    Huge ups to the two guys who tried to intervene. Wish that the outcome would’ve been different for the ex wife. The guy who did the stabbing is trash.

    • saveparadise says:

      Kudos to the good samaritans. If this happened in Texas……

      • ALLU says:

        This would never have happened in Texas. That is why the crime happened in here where gun laws are so strict. People who want to harm others know this and act accordingly.

        • choyd says:

          Except that on March 26, 2016 a woman stabbed her husband in public in San Antonio, TEXAS.

          Google “Affidavit: Woman stabbed husband repeatedly through sunroof”

  3. Allaha says:

    Women should be issued a handgun and carry permit along with the restraining order in certain cases.

    • Allaha says:

      ..and have the right to shoot to kill the violater upon being approached.

      • saveparadise says:

        Agreed. Law is backwards in Hawaii. If you have a TRO against someone you are not even allowed to purchase a firearm. You are on your own to defend yourself. As if a Temporary Restraining Order which is just a piece of legal paper is going to stop an assailant. In a lot of cases (its usually a woman) you are killed with no way of defending yourself. Imagine the mental anxiety involved with the victim.

        • DeltaDag says:

          Uh, saveparadise, I think you’ve got it backwards. If you (the petitioner) file a TRO against someone (the respondent) then the respondent is the one that (practically) immediately forfeits the right the bear arms and possess ammunition once TRO is granted by the court. Nothing I’m aware of prevents the petitioner from owning or purchasing a firearm. I’ll admit it’s true that if someone petitioning for a TRO is genuinely at risk from assault by a violent respondent, then the purchase of a new firearm for self protection is an onerous and agonizingly slow process. If you don’t already own a gun and need one to protect you right away, Hawaii’s gun laws will delay your acquisition for two weeks or more. I agree that in the end, a TRO is just a piece of paper.

  4. lokela says:

    Put this perp away for good. Should not have been roaming the streets. Get some room now since Obama released the druggies.

  5. Kapaho says:

    Lock this jerk in jail and throw away the key.

  6. bluespop says:

    I guess a 21 year age gap doesn’t help marital bliss. This guy should be executed. And what happened to her companion, how come he wasn’t stabbed? Two other dudes stepped up, looks like her companion stepped off.

  7. DeltaDag says:

    Perhaps women should be wary about guys sporting certain kinds of tattoos.

  8. stanislous says:

    Which piece of paper might have saved her life… a “Restraining Order” or a “Concealed Carry Permit” ?

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