4 officers to face retrial in falsification of overtime

The city prosecutor’s office will retry four Honolulu police officers accused of falsifying public documents for overtime purposes.

Attorneys for Sgts. Aaron Bernal and Duke Zoller, and officers Christopher and Patrick Bugarin, appeared in Honolulu District Court on Tuesday.

Charges against the four were dismissed in May when Circuit Judge Edward H. Kubo Jr. determined the case had taken too long to go to trial. Kubo, however, allowed prosecutors to refile the case.

The four are accused of putting the names of the two sergeants on arrest reports to show they were at DUI checkpoints when they were not so that they could increase the chances of earning overtime later if defendants challenged the arrests in court. Bernal and Zoller are additionally charged with theft and being an accomplice to theft.

Bernal was granted a six-week continuance to Aug. 22.

Schofield soldiers due for welcome-home event

There are 3,000 soldiers of the 25th Infantry Division’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team at Schofield Barracks who are due to march into position this week during a ceremony marking the unit’s return from a yearlong deployment to Iraq.

The Army plans to hold a redeployment ceremony for the brigade at Weyand Field on the central Oahu post at 2 p.m. Thursday. The commander of U.S. Army Pacific, Lt. Gen. Francis Wiercinski, plans to review the soldiers.