A state jury deliberated for a third day Wednesday in a murder case allegedly prompted by the jealousy of an ex-lover in Kaneohe.
Teddy Munet is standing trial for the murder of William "Billy" Fallau on July 19, 2012, in Kawainui State Park Reserve.
Fallau, 29, died of a gunshot wound to the back of his neck.
According to Kaipo Octubre, the state’s key witness, he went to the park with Munet and Fallau. Octubre told the jury that Munet pulled a gun from his pocket and shot Fallau when Fallau turned his head.
Moments before, Fallau had been smiling and passing around a folding saw he found on a stump. Octubre said he was shocked by the swiftness and abruptness of the shooting.
Deputy Prosecutor Rodney Veary said Wednesday that Munet shot Fallau because he was jealous about finding his pregnant ex-girlfriend in Fallau’s bedroom on the morning of the shooting. Munet was staying in the garage of Fallau’s house at the time, and the ex-girlfriend, Melia Vidal, was pregnant with Munet’s child.
But the ex-girlfriend was not intimately involved with Fallau and was only trying to sleep, Veary said.
Two months earlier, however, Munet had caught another ex-girlfriend, Catherine Zapata, in Fallau’s bedroom. In that instance, Zapata had been intimately involved with Fallau, Veary said.
In his testimony, Octubre said that after the shooting, he and Munet hiked back to Munet’s car. He said he stayed behind Munet because he was afraid of being shot, too. Inside the car he noticed Munet had blood on his hands.
Octubre said Munet licked his hands and said, "This is what Billy Fallau’s blood taste like."
He said Munet called Fallau a fake friend and that he hated Fallau.
Veary said Octubre entered into a cooperation agreement with the state last month to testify against Munet in exchange for immunity from charges against him related to the case.
He said Octubre gave the same testimony to police and a grand jury two years ago, bolstering his credibility on the stand.
The state agreed to drop driving-without-a-license and drug-possession charges against Octubre in exchange for his testimony.
Deputy Public Defender Edward Harada said the jury made only one communication by Wednesday morning, asking for transcripts of court testimony, but that is not possible.
He declined further comment on the case.
