The 36-year-old Wailupe man on trial in connection with the Jan. 12, 2022, slaying of his wife’s ex-lover and acupuncturist is expected to testify on his own behalf today.

But attorneys for Eric Thompson, who was prepared to testify Wednesday, argued outside the jury’s presence that the deputy prosecutor should not be allowed to ask him why Thompson never went to police when he knew he was the focus of a police investigation after his wife’s cellphone was seized by police.

His attorney, David Hayakawa, said he was contacted when Thompson’s wife’s phone was seized, and Hayakawa advised Thompson not to speak to police. Thompson hadn’t been arrested or notified by police, Hayakawa said.

Circuit Judge Paul Wong will rule this morning whether deputy prosecutor Benjamin Rose will be allowed to ask Thompson why he never came forward to police, nor made a statement, from Jan. 19, 2022, when his wife’s phone was seized, through Feb. 14, 2022, when he was served at a Foodland parking lot with search warrants.

The parties stipulated Wednesday as to the discovery of two .22-caliber long rifles in working condition, neither of which were used to kill Jon Tokuhara, who died after being shot in the face and head four times with a .22-caliber firearm at his acupuncture clinic in Waipahu.

Also presented into evidence were three discharged .22-caliber long or .22-caliber long rifle cartridge cases, all fired from the same firearm and found at the clinic, where Tokuhara’s body was discovered the morning of Jan. 13, 2022.

The three cartridges could have been fired from a pistol, revolver, rifle or shotgun (with an adapter), the stipulation says.

They were of different brands from the boxes of 1,774 .22-caliber cartridges of various brands recovered Feb. 1, 2022, from Thompson’s home.

The prosecution and defense examined at length this week some of Tokuhara’s exes and their exes.

Hayakawa suggested in his opening statement and in his line of questioning that Thompson may not be the only with a reason to kill Tokuhara.

He asked Daryl Fujita, the ex-boyfriend of Tokuhara’s girlfriend Andrea Irimata, about his first meeting with Tokuhara.

Fujita testified he had already broken up with Irimata, the mother of his only son, when he met Tokuhara on Jan. 1, 2022, just 11 days before Tokuhara’s death.

It was the second time Irimata had dated the acupuncturist. The first time was 11 or 12 years before his death.

Police ruled Fujita out as a suspect since the suspect was a man seen on video surveillance footage who went in and out of the clinic and drove off in a white 2014 to 2016 Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck.

On the night of the murder, Fujita had an alibi. He left work at 3:45 p.m., got to his home in Aiea where he lives with his parents at 4:15 p.m., and played with his and Irimata’s son and her two children. He fed them and brought them at about 8 or 8:15 p.m. to the Ewa house, where she and the children live.

But Irimata was home that night, which was unusual. Fujita said he cooks, cleans and puts the boy to bed, while Irimata would be out with Tokuhara.

Police were unable to retrieve any data from Fujita’s cellphone because, he explained, he bought a new phone, and regularly deletes all his calls and texts. He initially met detectives in January and returned in February with the new one.

Hayakawa grilled him as to whether he told detectives that he got a new phone and switched out the old one. “I don’t remember that,” he said.

He was asked if he thought “it looks kind of off?” that he clears his call logs.

“I don’t think it looks suspicious to me. … Under the circumstances, I understand. But I do it with my work phone.”

John DeMarco testified that his ex-wife, Noelle DeMarco, had an affair in 2008 with Tokuhara, while they were married and they had three children, 6, 3 and 1-1/2 years old.

He said he was more upset with her and could never trust her again, so they divorced right away.

He said he called Tokuhara initially and asked he stay away from his children for a while, but he remained cordial with Tokuhara, who continued to have a relationship with his children up until his death.

Noelle DeMarco said she went to the acupuncturist, who was able to relieve her headache pain, which she later learned was from a brain tumor.

She said the relationship began later. “I wasn’t technically divorced, however, emotionally we were not together.”

She said the relationship began later. She lived with him and he helped her when she underwent brain surgery and radiation in 2014. They broke up in 2021, but she kept helping with his books.

Hayakawa asked her if she knew of any online gambling he did or whether he carried large sums of cash. She did not, adding she did not work in the office.

Also outside of the jury’s presence, the judge and the attorneys discussed jury instructions. The state suggested including the reason why the state did not call Thompson’s wife, Joyce, as a witness. The judge opted not to since he thought it might cause jurors to wonder further why she did not testify.

State and federal law says the spouse of the accused has a privilege not to testify against the accused in a criminal proceeding.