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Drugs possibly involved in fatal Kakaako police shooting, HPD says

JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARADVERTISER.COM
                                HPD’s Special Services Division arrive on the scene on Friday.
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JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARADVERTISER.COM

HPD’s Special Services Division arrive on the scene on Friday.

Drugs appear to have been involved in Friday’s fatal police shooting of a 33-year-old armed man who barricaded himself in his Kakaako apartment.

The Honolulu Police Department published a brief media bulletin listing offenses the suspect might have faced, including first-degree attempted murder and third-degree promoting dangerous drugs. No other information was released by HPD today, including the man’s identity or the type of drugs involved.

Most of the circumstances of Friday afternoon’s shooting and what led up to it are still unclear. It began with uniformed patrol officers responding to a call of an adult male armed with a handgun. HPD’s Crisis Negotiation Team was sent to diffuse the situation, according to the bulletin, at his residence at the Kamakee Vista apartment building, located at 1065 Kawaiahao St.

An officer with HPD’s Special Services Division, or SWAT Team, fired a rubber bullet at the man, which led to a struggle between the suspect and police, said interim Police Chief Rade Vanic at a news conference just hours after the shooting. He said a SWAT officer shot the man after he pointed a handgun at another officer.

Friday’s incident was the second fatal shooting by Honolulu police this month and the fourth this year.

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