Witnesses reported that a 58-year-old man was using a front-end loader to ram cars into the home where a family gathering was taking place, then opened fire at people gathered in the carport, fatally shooting three women at the residence in Waianae, a community about 30 miles west of downtown Honolulu, Honolulu police detective Lt. Deena Thoemmes said at a news conference.
At some point, a 42-year-old man who lived in the home fatally shot the suspect with a handgun, she said at a news conference. A police spokesperson did not immediately respond to a telephone message or an email asking for details about why the resident was arrested.
The women who were killed were 34, 36 and 29, Thoemmes said. A 31-year-old man and a 52-year-old woman were taken to the hospital in critical condition, she said.
The suspect, who was not identified, had four 55-gallon drums containing an unknown fuel in the front-end loader, Thoemmes said. Witnesses reported that he fired rounds into them but police have not confirmed that yet, she said.
The shootings are the latest of several shootings in recent weeks in the area that have led to police to pledge to work to fight gun violence, Police Chief Joe Logan said at the news conference. But he said Saturday’s shootings were not related to the earlier ones. He suggested it would be difficult for police to prevent such a targeted act stemming from a dispute unless someone reached out earlier.
“There have been several incidents in the previous months and weeks, but this incident is not related to those. This incident happened as a result of neighbors. So I want to reassure the public that this is not a random act, but a targeted one,” Logan said.
