Media Release (update)

Investigators from the Hawaii Police Department and the state are continuing their search for a 49-year-old California man who was reported missing after spearfishing in Kailua-Kona on Saturday morning.

Paulo Dominici of San Francisco went spearfishing with a friend offshore of the Kona Makai Condominiums on Alii Drive at 6:45 a.m. Saturday. He was reported missing at 10:47 a.m. after he failed to return to shore.

Fire Department personnel located items belonging to the man and turned them over to the Police Department. No body has been discovered.

Witnesses reported seeing a boat in the area where Dominici was believed to have been diving. An inspection of some of Dominici’s recovered items indicate that he may have been involved in a boating accident.

Investigators from the Area II Criminal Investigations Section and the Conservation Enforcement Division of the State of Hawaii Department of Land And Natural Resources are actively investigating all leads. They have not ruled out the possibility of a shark attack.

The case is still classified as a missing person investigation.

Investigators are seeking the public’s help in locating witnesses or persons who may have any information about boats in the area of the Kona Makai Condominiums on Saturday morning between 6:45 a.m. and 10:47 a.m. Police ask anyone with information to call Detective Sharlotte Bird at 326-4646, extension 228, or the Police Department’s non-emergency line at 935-3311.

Tipsters who prefer to remain anonymous may call Crime Stoppers at 961-8300 in Hilo or 329-8181 in Kona. All Crime Stoppers information is kept confidential.