'The Other Side of Paradise' with Lynn Kawano
Crime, corruption, scandal ... You won't find it in the travel brochures or on the postcards, but life in Hawaii isn't always paradise. In this podcast from Hawaii News Now Chief Investigative Reporter Lynn Kawano, we take you behind the headlines that the visitor bureaus don't advertise and delve into the stories that keep us talking (and up at night).
Episodes
In this episode of "The Other Side of Paradise," we talk to the former assistant director of HSI's Honolulu office. John Tobon is a founding member of the agency, which started after the 9-11 attacks. He was at the World Trade Center when the planes hit on that day, working for U.S. Customs. Tobon describes his escape, talks about some of the international drug lords he arrested and why he is choosing to stay in Hawaii post-r...
Outrage over a proposed $1.5 million settlement for a wrongful death lawsuit could cost taxpayers millions, legal experts say.The family of a South African rugby star, Lindani Myeni, is suing the city and the officers who shot Myeni, killing him in 2021.
The officers were also injured by Myeni during the incident.Honolulu police, the mayor, and city prosecutor were among many who opposed a settlement. Their testimony convinced the ...
The man behind the DNA discovery in the Dana Ireland case said Hawaii County police had enough to arrest the suspect on July 19. Instead, Albert Lauro, Jr., was released and committed suicide four days later. Stephen Kramer, a former federal prosecutor and the man who co-founded the FBI’s forensic genealogy team, said a DNA match from the national database CODIS was enough probable cause to arrest Lauro for Ireland’s 1991 murder.
Over the last two years, dozens of Oahu drivers have been arrested for operating a vehicle under the influence with breathalyzer results of 0.00 — meaning no alcohol showed as present in their system, HNN Investigates has found.
In the latest episode of "The Other Side of Paradise," Lynn Kawano speaks to a driver who was arrested despite being sober and gets a new response from HPD to her exclusive investigation.
After nearly two days of deliberation, a federal jury returned a not guilty verdict in the sprawling bribery case against Keith Kaneshiro, Honolulu’s longest-serving prosecutor.
In the latest episode of "The Other Side of Paradise," Lynn Kawano talks to the jury foreman in the case, who said while he knew there was "something wrong," the evidence presented didn't back up the government's allegations beyond a reasonable doubt.
See o...
Every year, thousands of Hawaii residents leave the islands for opportunities and economic relief on the continent. Many end up in Las Vegas, now home away from home for a considerable contingent of Hawaii transplants, including Native Hawaiians. In “Priced Out of Paradise,” HNN investigative reporter Lynn Kawano puts a fresh spotlight on the thriving Hawaii community she found in the Ninth Island.
See omnystudio.com/listener for pr...
First responders are being called to overdoses daily in Hawaii as fentanyl takes hold across the state. And stopping the drug pipeline won’t be easy, experts say.
To understand the crisis, HNN Investigates traveled to the U.S.-Mexico border as part of a new series exploring the heavy toll of fentanyl in the islands. Anthony Chrysanthis, the deputy special agent in charge of the DEA’s Los Angeles field office, said just about all of...
HNN Investigative Reporter Lynn Kawano takes you behind the scenes of a story that's rocked Hawaii's football community: Two former Hawaii football players making headlines as college starters have agreed to settle a civil lawsuit stemming from a criminal, sex assault case that was handled in juvenile court.
Jayden de Laura, the starting quarterback at the University of Arizona and Kamoi Latu, the starting safety at the University ...
On the afternoon of Christmas Eve 1991, 23-year-old Dana Ireland left her parents’ home in Puna for a bike ride and never returned.
Good Samaritans called 911 after finding her mangled bicycle, a shoe, and clumps of hair ― but no rider.
Thirty minutes later and five miles away, Ireland was found in the bushes of a fishing trail, nude from the waist down and barely conscious. She died at the hospital from blood loss and multiple tra...
Eloy, Arizona is in the middle of the desert ― about an hour from Phoenix.
It’s a sharp contrast from Hawaii. But it’s where 1,000 Hawaii inmates are currently housed at Saguaro Correctional Center, a facility the state pays millions to each year to relieve overcrowding at in-state facilities.
Hawaii News Now was the only television news crew allowed inside since it was built in 2007 to ease overcrowding in the islands.
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Newly unsealed court documents include disturbing new allegations in the murder case against Michael Miske, the businessman accused of running a criminal enterprise.
Miske is accused in the kidnapping and murder of 21-year old Johnathan Fraser.
The previously secret filings also link the murder case to the killing of another man, a confidential source who knew the information he provided law enforcement put him in danger.
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Russian spies in Hawaii? That's the allegations from the U.S. Attorney's office. Prosecutors say a couple from Kapolei are accused of stealing the identities of dead babies from Texas in the 1980s, and living under those names for decades. Alongside those accusations are photos of the couple in KGB uniforms. There are doubts though about the spy claims, as the government has retracted some of it's statement about the couple's ali...
Can federal laws be the key to shutting down Hawaii's illegal game rooms? Homeland Security Investigations is working with police to attack crimes linked to game rooms and that are a constant source of problems for communities.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
After 45 years of service, John McCarthy retired from the Honolulu Police Department last year as deputy chief.
In this episode of "The Other Side of Paradise," he explains the circumstances that pushed him out, his frustrations with the department, the public corruption scandal that rocked the department and how all that affects the rank and file.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Juan Tejedor Baron has been extradited back to Hawaii to face charges that he murdered an elderly Hawaii Loa Ridge man and then encased his body in concrete in his own bathtub. The case has shocked the wealthy community, and experts say there are certain to be more twists and turns in the case.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
With the capture Wednesday of the two Hawaii Loa Ridge murder suspects, authorities are turning their attention to the investigation ― and a possible motive.Scott Hannon, 34, and Juan Tejedor Baron, 23, were nabbed in the Los Angeles area following an intense manhunt. They’re suspected in the grisly murder of an East Honolulu man, whose body was found encased in concrete in the bathtub of his multi-million-dollar home in a ga...
Three former city executives are preparing for trial after being indicted for conspiracy. The three all had a hand in the $250,000 payoff of ex-Police Chief Louis Kealoha, who is now serving time in federal prison. The only police commissioner who was against that payoff has a message: "This didn't have to happen."
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The first book is out about the largest public corruption scandal in state history. It's called "The Mailbox Conspiracy" and is written by the man who uncovered the Kealohas' crimes. In this episode of "The Other Side of Paradise," HNN's investigative reporter Lynn Kawano sits down with former federal public defender Alexander Silvert to talk about the Kealoha scandal and what he hopes Hawaii will learn from it.
The Isabella "Ariel" Kalua murder case has shocked Oahu. Prosecutors say the 6-year-old was tortured and murdered by her adoptive parents, Isaac and Lehua Kalua, who reported her missing in September. The two face an enhanced sentence of life behind bars without the possibility of parole, but experts note there are host of difficulties with the case. The biggest one: Investigators have not found Isabella's remains.
See omnystudio.co...
Why is it taking so long for federal prosecutors to move forward with the case against former city Prosecutor Keith Kaneshiro? In this episode, HNN's Lynn Kawano breaks down one of the many topics that investigators are zeroing in on.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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