Media Release

A 24-year-old Kailua-Kona man has been charged with first-degree robbery and drug offenses in connection with a robbery Tuesday night (October 7) in Kailua-Kona.

At 9:45 p.m. Tuesday, Kona patrol officers responded to a reported robbery at a gas station and convenience store on Kuakini Highway. Upon arrival, they were told that a masked man holding a knife had demanded money from a cashier and then fled in his truck with an undisclosed amount of cash. A witness provided a description of the man and a license plate number of the truck.

Two hours later, a detective from the Area II Criminal Investigations Section located the suspect, Gregory Bennett, at a gas station on Lako Street and arrested him. He was taken to the Kona police cellblock while detectives continued the investigation.

Police obtained a search warrant and searched Bennett’s truck, where they recovered 4.9 grams of a crystal substance.

At 11 p.m. Thursday, Bennett was charged with first-degree robbery, promoting a dangerous drug and possessing drug paraphernalia.

His bail was set at $9,000. He remains in the cellblock pending his initial court appearance scheduled for today.