Hawaiʻi Police Department
Major Randy Apele
Area I Operations Bureau
Phone: 961-2356
Report No. C16004167
Media Release (update)
Hawaiʻi Island police have identified the man who died in an officer involved shooting Tuesday (February 9) in Hilo.
He has been identified as 29-year-old Scottie I.K. Yanagawa of Hilo.
At approximately 10:40 p.m. Tuesday, police initiated a traffic stop on a Toyota mini-van in a parking lot of a shopping center on the 300 block of East Makaʻala Street. The van was known to be operated by Yanagawa, who was wanted for his involvement in a shooting in the Honoliʻi area on January 31 and for escaping from the Hale Nani correctional facility on November 19.
Yanagawa was known to be armed and dangerous.
Yanagawa and the van’s driver, 30-year-old Kaiini Febo-Santiago of Pāhoa, were commanded to exit the vehicle. While exiting the passenger side of the vehicle, Yanagawa discharged a round from a handgun. In response, officers discharged their firearms, fatally injuring him.
Santiago was uninjured and arrested at the scene on suspicion of hindering prosecution for having aiding a wanted fugitive. She is being held at the Hilo police cellblock pending further investigation.
The officers who fired their weapons have 14, 12, 7 and 6 years of experience with law enforcement.
As is standard practice in any police involved shooting, the Police Department’s Area I Criminal Investigations Section will conduct a criminal investigation into the shooting and the Office of Professional Standards will conduct an administrative investigation.
Police ask anyone who witnessed the incident to contact Detective Joel Field at 961-2381 or joel.field@hawaiicounty.gov or Grant Todd at 961-2385 or grant.todd@hawaiicounty.go.
Tipsters who prefer to remain anonymous may call the island wide Crime Stoppers number at 961-8300 and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000. Crime Stoppers is a volunteer program run by ordinary citizens who want to keep their community safe. Crime Stoppers doesn’t record calls or subscribe to caller ID. All Crime Stoppers information is kept confidential.