We have been on this exact kind of trip many times, in Hawaii, and around the Pacific, and we still can hardly believe what we are reading. During a private snorkel charter off Kona, a 21-year-old visitor from Kansas stabbed the 62-year-old captain with a fillet knife on the return trip to Honokohau Harbor on Thursday.
Hawaii Island police say Captain Stan Lurbiecki sustained a stab wound to the lower abdomen and numerous knife cuts to his head and hands. Per the captain’s own account shared publicly after the attack, he wrestled the knife away, turned the boat around to recover his attacker from the water, and piloted home while the attacker’s sibling applied pressure to his wounds and kept him from bleeding to death.
The attack unfolded on the return to shore.
The vessel was a 55-foot catamaran, called No Wiki, operating out of Honokohau Harbor in North Kona on Thursday afternoon, April 16. The suspect, Avery Nissen of Overland Park, Kansas, had stayed onboard during the snorkel portion while his mother and sibling entered the water with a crew member. The snorkeling ended, everyone returned to the boat, and Lurbiecki began piloting back toward the harbor.
It will be interesting to hear what the captain and his assailant say about what happened, if anything, while they were alone on the boat. After everyone returned to the boat, and 30 minutes from the harbor, Nissen went into the galley and came back with a fillet knife and stabbed Lurbiecki without warning. This was according to the captain’s own account.
According to Lurbiecki, he wrestled the knife away. Nissen kept attacking, and his mother tried to intervene. Nissen then jumped off the side of the boat. Lurbiecki went back for Nissen despite heavy blood loss and multiple stab wounds. Nissen climbed back onto the boat and sat with his mother for the rest of the trip without further incident.
Hawaii Island Police reported that other passengers onboard intervened and restrained Nissen. Either way, the captain was able to retain control of the vessel and turned it back toward the place where Nissen had gone overboard.
The captain turned around to bring his attacker back on board.
During the return, per the captain’s account, Nissen’s sibling applied pressure to his wounds and helped keep him from bleeding out before reaching shore. He continued piloting and backed the boat into Honokohau Harbor, where paramedics were waiting at the dock.
Lurbiecki was transported to Kona Community Hospital and was reported to be in stable condition. He has been a boat captain for 35 years and described the incident as the most random, wildest, craziest thing he had ever heard of. Mark Towill, owner and president of Hawaii Nautical, said he had never heard of anything like this happening in the charter industry before.
Boat crews don’t prepare for this.
Private charters operate with passengers and crew in the same confined space once the boat leaves the harbor. There is no immediate law enforcement response and no way to isolate someone who becomes dangerous. In this case, the response came from the captain, one crew member, and the attacker’s own family.
Private charters rely solely on basic booking information and waivers. There is no screening process designed to identify a risk like this before departure. Visitors book these trips because they feel smaller, easier, personal, and more direct than a big commercial tour. Crews work on the assumption that the people boarding will conduct themselves appropriately.
This case breaks that assumption in new ways. The threat came directly from a paying guest already on board, and the guest’s own family became part of the response after the attack started.
Charges are in place, and the case moves to court Monday.
Nissen faces second degree attempted murder, first degree assault, and second degree assault. Bail has been set at $1,570,000. His first court appearance is scheduled for Monday, April 20, in Kona District Court. Hawaii Island police are asking anyone with information to contact Detective Bradley Llanes at 808-326-4646, extension 268.
There is still no public explanation for how this could ever happen. Cases like this often move forward on charges before motive is established. The known facts are direct. A captain running a private snorkel charter off Kona was stabbed with a fillet knife by a 21-year-old visitor, fought off the attack, and brought the vessel back to harbor with very serious injuries.
Visitors board snorkeling charters expecting a safe and controlled outing with a small group and an experienced crew. Most trips simply end that way. This one clearly did not. It shows how quickly a routine charter can turn into an emergency that only those already on board can handle.
For crews, it showed how fast a normal trip can become something they have to manage without backup. For visitors, it changes how some may look at being offshore with a small group of people they do not even know. The captain’s response is likely to remain with readers. He was stabbed, kept fighting, helped to recover the assailant, and then still kept control of the vessel until it reached the dock.
Have you been on a private charter in Hawaii? Does an incident like this change how you think about boarding a small boat with strangers? Have you ever been on a tour where something felt off before it started?
Photo Credit: © Beat of Hawaii.
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I’ve got a dollar to your doughnut. Some Skippers will now sail armed. You Know some of them want to.
I can only imagine what would have happened if he had grabbed the knife while snorkelers were still in the water and if he’d been successful in killing the captain. Possibly all could have been lost at sea if they weren’t able to figure out the radio to call for help.
A number of cases of this sort with inexplicable extreme violence have been linked to non prescription substances being ingested recreationally. So why not do a test before you get on the plane? There are small portable units that countries use for Driving whilst under the influence of Drugs. It is of course assumption only that this was such a case. If the assailant suffered from mental health issues then it would not seem appropriate to go on such a trip. When the facts come out we can opine until then we wait. I do hope the Captain makes a full and speedy recovery.
Yes, I have done several of these charters. No, it won’t change future plans. This is a crazy, rare instance and not a likely to repeat risk.
I have worked for some of these Kona boat charters and so have heard many tragic stories that the public never hears. In this case, it sounds like a mental issue … which seems more common than ever … especially now that so many judges are paid to release criminals and murderers while the public sits silently saying nothing. Seems we are now living in a time where one has to be wide awake and aware of what is going on around them in public at All times. Not to be paranoid … but just paying attention … and especially with children because they can be kid napped in a heart beat for trafficking.
I think this is really why I prefer bigger boats with more crew. At least there’s some backup for any eventuality.
Why are there knives just sitting out where anyone can grab them? I suspect we won’t see these being so readily available after this incident.
That poor captain. Thirty five years doing his job and then this happens on a routine snorkel.
On the other hand I don’t think this will change anything for me. These trips are still safe overall. This is just one very sad case.
The captain going back for him says a lot. Wonder if most people would have left him in the water. And this will now be one reason to get nervous on smaller boats. No security, nowhere to go, and you’re stuck out there.
Been on a Kona snorkel charter. You never think about something like this. Just wild. And so sad. Luckily the captain will be okay.