HONOLULU (KHON2) – The suspect in the Mililani parking lot assault incident appeared in court Monday.
Desmond Kekahuna, who made his appearance in the video from a cell block, has been charged with attempted murder and assault for the February 1 incident.
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According to court records, Kekahuna intentionally hit a woman in Mililani town center, then got out of his car and attacked a Good Samaritan who tried to help him.
Police said surveillance video showed Kekahuna’s vehicle speeding across a line in the parking lot and hitting the woman, later identified by her family as Christel Taliolu.
Witnesses said that Kekahuna then got out of his car with the tire iron and began waving it at people. A bystander stepped in to help and that’s when, according to court records, Kekahuna attacked him.
“I just put my hands up and tried to be non-threatening, and I held back, like, ‘Hey, I’m just trying to help’. And then, that’s when he started hitting me,” Zachariah Jones said.
A witness said that Kekahuna “kept going between Taliula (sic) and Jones and wouldn’t let anyone near him.”
The police arrested Kekhuna from the spot. He is in custody on $1 million bail. His preliminary hearing is set for February 8.
A GoFundMe has been set up For the hospital expenses of Talyulu.
