$10,000 reward offered in Kauai vandalism case

The Kauai Island Utility Cooperative is offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the suspect or suspects who damaged the cooperative’s hydropower infrastructure last month.

KIUC President and Chief Executive Officer David Bissell estimated the cost of the repairs to be in the tens of thousands of dollars, a county news release said.

Police said they believe someone used concrete cutting equipment to damage KIUC’s water diversion site on the North Fork of the Wailua River between Oct. 11 and 18.

The vandal or vandals destroyed part of the concrete channel, interrupting water flow to a ditch that feeds water to two of KIUC’s hydrogenerators, Kauai police said.

Bissell said the incident was deliberate sabotage of Kauai’s electrical infrastructure and that the cooperative was working with Kauai police and the FBI to identify the perpetrators.

KIUC has a state permit to divert water to generate hydroelectric power, the county said. The water is returned to the stream where it is used downstream by farmers and cattle ranchers.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call Kauai police at 241-1711 or Detective Damien McCallum at 241-1693. Anonymous tips can be made by calling CrimeStoppers at 246-8300.