Notable Visitor Arrests in Hawaii Include Recent Incident

A recent arrest at Honolulu Airport brought a series of other criminal arrests here back to mind. This time, it was someone suspected of retail theft in San Francisco that resulted in their arrest on the jet bridge in Hawaii. It was not the lei greeting they might have been expecting. Other such crimes, unfortunately, have included murders.

The most recent arrest harkened back to a theft reported at a business in a San Francisco mall. Witnesses recounted that two women entered the store, brazenly pilfered items from display cases, and secreted them into bags. The entire escapade ended when one vigilant employee confronted the women, after which they were able to escape the scene in a getaway car with their ill-gotten goods.

San Francisco Police Department’s burglary unit recognized one of the suspects, Denayaha Duree, as involved in organized retail crime.

She somehow managed to escape to the point of getting on a flight to Honolulu. However, a posse, including U.S. marshals, arranged a surprise airport greeting, at which time Duree was apprehended while disembarking the plane. The basis for the arrest was multiple outstanding warrants. Earlier this week, Durree was pending extradition and a one-way flight back to the mainland.

Other famous visitor arrests in Hawaii.

Christopher Deedy was a federal agent from Virginia who fatally shot Kollin Elderts in a notorious McDonald’s Waikiki confrontation. The case concerned self-defense and the use of deadly force. Deedy’s trial ended in a mistrial, and, on retrial, he was later acquitted of both murder and manslaughter charges.

Stephanie Pratt is a television personality who appeared in the reality television series The Hills. While working on Lost in Hawaii in 2007, she was convicted of second-degree theft for shoplifting more than $1,300 of clothing from Neiman Marcus in Honolulu.

Dana Ireland murder. The young woman from Washington State was murdered while bike riding on vacation on the Big Island. The infamous murder case remained unsolved for years despite all efforts and media coverage. In a convoluted case, it still isn’t clear who committed that crime, now many years later.

John Peckham, a California psychologist, was arrested in Hawaii for allegedly attempting to poison his girlfriend with a toxic chemical found in antifreeze. That incident occurred while they were on vacation together on Maui. Peckham was charged with attempted murder, although it isn’t clear whether or not he was convicted.

Gary Ruby murder. This horrific murder sent shockwaves through Hawaii not long ago. It occurred at the luxury Honolulu property pictured here in a gated community. Gary Ruby met his untimely demise at the hands of his lover, a visitor to Hawaii, who, trying to hide the crime, placed Ruby’s body in a bathtub filled with concrete and coffee grounds. Juan Baron was apprehended while attempting to flee to Mexico. A motion to dismiss the case for prosecutorial misconduct was filed, and a plea deal may be in the works.

These cases all involved people from outside Hawaii who were arrested while in the state for various reasons. Even though Hawaii is the most isolated island chain in the world, it’s still not an easy escape from serious crime.