Accused spy ordered back into detention
A judge has revoked bail for a defense contractor accused of giving military secrets to his Chinese girlfriend because the defendant has been communicating with her.
U.S. District Magistrate Judge Kevin Chang on Thursday ordered Benjamin Bishop back to federal detention while he awaits trial.
Defense attorney Birney Bervar said Bishop was sending the girlfriend love letters. Bervar said Bishop asked another resident of his halfway house to send the letter and set up an email account so he could contact her.
U.S. District Judge Leslie Kobayashi had allowed Bishop to stay at the halfway house but imposed conditions designed to prevent him from contacting the girlfriend.
Investigators say Bishop gave his girlfriend secrets about nuclear weapons, missile defense and other issues.
Japanese princess to discuss art history
Princess Akiko, a recognized art historian as well as a member of Japan’s royal family, will speak on Japanese art next week at Hawaii Pacific University.
The princess’s lecture on "Constructing the History of Japanese Art in the British Museum" will begin at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday at Aloha Tower Marketplace in the Hale o Kai meeting room on the ground floor.
The talk is free and open to the public, but attendees should expect to be screened by security prior to entry.
Princess Akiko is part of the oldest continuous hereditary monarchy in the world. She is the daughter of the late Prince Tomohito of Mikasa, a first cousin of Emperor Akihito, Japan’s reigning emperor.
Repairs to cut water at Sand Island park
There will be no water service for showers and restrooms today at Sand Island Recreational Area because of repairs being made to the water system.
The Department of Land and Natural Resources said Sand Island Park will be open, but the restrooms and showers will be closed.
Doonwood Engineering will replace worn parts in a backflow preventer.
Repairs are expected to be completed by about midday.
State reopens Maui beach
A 2-mile stretch of Maui’s Makena State Beach Park reopened Thursday morning at sunrise in the wake of a shark encounter.
Two spear-fishermen said a large shark chased them Wednesday. The water was closed by the state Department of Land and Natural Resources at noon Wednesday from Ahihi Bay to Makena Landing, a mile in either direction from the location of the encounter.
The initial report made by the divers to lifeguards at the beach park was that an 8- to 10-foot Galapagos shark made several passes at them while they were spearfishing close to shore off Black Sand Beach at Makena. They tried to fend it off with their spears, but the shark kept coming, so they let it take their catch of speared fish and headed back to shore at Little Beach.
Wednesday’s closure followed a shark attack Monday that killed Washington state visitor Patrick A. Briney, who was fishing from a kayak a half-mile off Little Beach.
Motorist drives car off a cliff
A 73-year-old woman was taken to Maui Memorial Hospital on Wednesday after she lost control of her car, which went down a 30-foot cliff at Makamakaole Gulch in northern Maui.
Maui fire officials said the incident occurred at 3:36 p.m. on Kahekili Highway.
The victim apparently failed to make a turn in the road on the Kahakuloa side of Makamakaole Gulch. Her car went down a 20- to 30-foot cliff and landed on its wheels in a resident’s driveway. She was taken to a hospital, but her condition was not reported by Maui fire officials.
