A 21-year-old man made his initial appearance today at South Hilo District Court in connection with Monday’s stabbing deaths of his grandparents in Hilo.

Joshua Ho appeared before Judge Kanani Laubach via video conference from the courthouse cellblock on charges of one count of first-degree murder and two counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of Jeffrey and Carla Takamine, owners of Big Island Delights.

Ho was also charged with one count of second-degree attempted murder.

Laubach granted a motion to suspend court proceedings to allow Ho to undergo a three-member panel examination. He is scheduled to return to court on March 28 when the judge is expected to address the panel’s report.

Ho is currently being held at the Hawaii Community Correctional Center in lieu of $2.75 million bail.

Hawaii island police responded to a call of a disturbance at a Makalika Street home shortly before 7 a.m. Monday.

According to police in court documents, Ho’s mother told police Ho has schizophrenia and was having an episode and holding a knife.

When officers arrived, they saw Ho being restrained by his brother and father.

Police found the Takamines in their bedroom, dead with multiple stab wounds.

Police said Ho’s brother woke up when he heard a female screaming. He then observed Ho standing unclothed in the living room while holding a kitchen knife. The brother also saw blood on Ho’s chest.

Court documents said the brother attempted to get the knife away from Ho when a struggle ensued. The brother managed to get the knife from Ho and threw it out of the house. Police later recovered the knife.

The brother sustained multiple lacerations to his head. He was taken to Hilo Medical Center where he received 19 stitches to his head.

Ho was also taken to the hospital for lacerations to his hands.

Community members are in shock over the deaths of the beloved couple.

Jeffrey and Carla Takamine opened Big Island Delights, a popular cookie and confections company in Hilo in 1996.