A 36-year-old man was arrested on Thursday in connection with the killings of three men on Hawaii's Big Island. Jacob Daniel Baker is suspected of murder, burglary, and other charges.
A man wanted in connection with the killings of three men was apprehended on Thursday following a manhunt on Hawaii’s Big Island. Jacob Daniel Baker , 36, of Pahoa, was arrested on suspicion of murder, burglary and other charges following a massive search that included help from state and federal authorities.
Police received information on Thursday afternoon that Baker was hiding in a grassy area, ducking down as traffic passed, Hawaii Police Chief Reed Mahuna said. Police found him hiding in a small cave and arrested him.
Authorities said they believed Baker was involved in the deaths of three men: a 69-year-old man found partially submerged in a cement pond; a 79-year-old man who was found just a few hundred feet away; and a third man, 69, whose body was found about 19 miles away. Police said they had not identified a motive but were confident Baker was involved in all three killings.
At a news conference on Thursday, Mahuna did not release any information on how police identified Baker as a suspect or what evidence may connect him to the killings. He said investigators had not found any connections among the victims, other than two of them lived near each other. Police have identified the first victim as Robert Shine and the third victim as John Carse. The name of the 79-year-old man was pending positive identification.
Autopsies show Shane was strangled, and Carse died from “sharp force trauma,” police said. Police found Shine at a residence in lower Puna, partially submerged in a cement pond on Monday night, Mahuna said. The 79-year-old man was found dead with apparent blunt force injuries shortly after 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Mahuna said. At around 10 p.m. on Tuesday, police responded to a property on a welfare check request and found Carse dead.
Just days before the slayings, two women had requested temporary restraining orders against Baker, saying he had threatened and harassed them at a farm, The Associated Press reported. One woman was staying there and the other co-owned it. A judge denied both applications, saying there was not enough proof of harassment.
One of the women claimed in her petition that Baker threatened to kill several women who were staying on the property, and caused a number of them to move or end their stays. She included a link to a video that allegedly captured at least one threat, but the link had either been removed or was incorrect as of Thursday.
The other woman alleged that Baker threatened women and a disabled man, and said he would trespass on the property, take things that didn’t belong to him and said his intention was to squat on the property. Stephen Shaffer told the AP that Baker had lived on his ex-wife’s property in Puna, where they grow fruit, and Baker climbed coconut trees for her. But after several months, she sought a temporary restraining order against Baker, he said.
Shaffer said he didn’t know details of their falling out, only that his ex-wife felt threatened by Baker and wanted him to move out.
“He just seemed to me kind of angry,” said Shaffer, who lives in a separate dwelling on the same property. He added that others in the area were concerned about Baker but didn’t elaborate. Donald Hyatt, who is friends with two of the men killed and Shaffer’s ex-wife, said Baker left the cabin he was living in on the property months ago. Baker returned recently claiming “squatter’s rights,” and threatened Shaffer’s ex, Hyatt said.
Hyatt urged her to seek a restraining order. Anyone with information is urged to contact Detective Duane Rapoza at 961-2383 or via email at Duane. Rapoza@hawaiipolice.gov, or Detective Daniel Tam at 961-2380 or via email at Daniel. Tam@hawaiipolice.gov.
They can also call the police department’s non-emergency number at 935-3311. Anonymous tips can be made through Crime Stoppers at 961-8300 and be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.
Jacob Daniel Baker Hawaii Triple Murder Arrest Murder Investigation
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