Kapolei residents shaken after hammer attack on neighbor

An elderly Kapolei man was attacked in his garage by a stranger wielding a hammer, apparently intent on robbing him, neighbors say.

Neighbors said the man was doing laundry in his garage at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday on Kumulipo Street when a man came up from behind, grabbed him and threw him to the ground.

“As he was getting up, the guy pulled out a hammer he had with him, and the assailant struck him (in the head) a couple times with a hammer,” said Gabriel Imamura, who lives eight houses away, and gathered the information from other residents.

“The man’s wife came screaming, but by the time she got to the garage, the robber heard the screams and took off,” he said.

Another neighbor heard the screams and came outside, but by then the suspect had apparently fled in a silver Charger, which sped toward Kapolei Park and returned, speeding back up the street, Imamura said.

Because the suspect did not make any demands for property, it was not considered a robbery, police said. Instead, police classified the case as a first-degree burglary, a Class B felony.

“I was shocked,” Imamura said. “My neighborhood is a nice neighborhood.”

He said one woman who lives in the neighborhood is now afraid to walk her dog.

No one else had a description of the suspect, but another neighbor had security footage and saw a black sport utility vehicle driving up and down the street, Imamura said.

He said neighbors suspect multiple people are involved, first casing the neighborhood before attempting to rob residents or burglarize homes.