Candle caused destructive fire
The Honolulu Fire Department determined an unattended candle caused a fire that destroyed a Palolo home and displaced five people early Friday.
Capt. James Todd said the candle was in a bathroom of the three-bedroom home at the 1200 block of Palolo Avenue. Firefighters responded at 2:49 a.m. and brought the fire under control at 3:10 a.m.
Residents escaped without injuries. Damage to the structure and its contents is estimated at $220,000.
Man faces robbery charge
A 26-year-old man was charged Friday with first-degree robbery in connection with a robbery at a Nuuanu home.
Jairemie A. Quijano is being held in lieu of $100,000 bail.
At about 1:30 a.m. Thursday, he allegedly brandished a deadly weapon and stole property from a 33-year-old woman. Quijano and the victim don’t know each other.
Police declined to describe the type of weapon or the property taken.
About two hours after the robbery, police officers located Quijano at his home in Makakilo.
Award-winning officer arrested
A Honolulu police officer is under investigation for an alleged sex assault and kidnapping.
Police arrested officer Nicholas Masagatani at 3:45 a.m. Saturday at his Nuuanu home. He remained in custody without charges as of 6:30 p.m. Saturday.
In December 2011, Hawaii News Now reported Masagatani was one of three officers honored with the Warrior Gold Medal, HPD’s highest award, relating their response to a crime spree that April.
In a 2011 Star-Advertiser story, the spree involved stolen vehicles, a carjacking and a man firing a shotgun at drivers on Kalanianaole Highway.
The armed man, identified as Mark Ahnee, then 28, of Mililani, and Michael Edward Manning Jr., 35 at the time, of no permanent address, apparently crashed into a barrier on the highway before Ainakoa Avenue and left the vehicle. Officers pursued Ahnee on foot when he fired at them and shot back several times, killing him.
The investigation on Masagatani is ongoing, police said.
