LIHU‘E — If stopped by Kaua‘i Police Department officer Shawn Hanna, addressing him could be a problem. Soon, he will be the Rev. Dr. Officer Shawn Hanna, as he is already a KPD officer and ordained minister, and by 2012
LIHU‘E — If stopped by Kaua‘i Police Department officer Shawn Hanna, addressing him could be a problem.
Soon, he will be the Rev. Dr. Officer Shawn Hanna, as he is already a KPD officer and ordained minister, and by 2012 expects to acquire a doctorate degree in human services and criminal justice, from Walden University.
He is, for those and other reasons, not your typical police officer.
He is, also, the KPD December Officer of the Month, for a number of reasons including his tenacity in cracking a fraud case normally assigned to a KPD detective, said Lt. Sherwin Kaleo Perez, Lihu‘e district commander in the KPD Patrol Services Bureau.
In late October, Hanna was assigned a case wherein a suspect negotiated a worthless negotiable instrument (NWNI, a bad check) in an amount over $200,000 at a local credit union, believed to have come from a fraudulent online advertisement, Perez said.
The check was fraudulent, and in the days and weeks following fraudulent money orders were obtained by the suspect and deposited into his account, against which he wrote checks for large amounts for various purposes, Perez said.
“Due to the complex nature of these types of cases, patrol officers normally conduct an initial basic investigation and the case is then forwarded to a detective who is trained and specializes in white-collar cases,” said Perez.
But Hanna took interest in the case, and followed up on all the leads, working with complainants even after being reminded by his supervisor that such cases usually are forwarded to the white-collar-crime detective.
His investigative work led to the suspect’s arrest on eight counts of NWNI, eight counts of attempted theft in the second degree, two second-degee forgery counts, and single counts of first-degree theft and second-degree theft.
Hanna has also been tasked with updating the KPD Web site, including making it compliant with provisions in the federal Americans with Disabilities Act.
“He works hard, and is just a fine all-around officer,” Perez said.
Over the past three months, Hanna made 22 felony arrests and 36 misdemeanor arrests, and issued 195 citations including 88 for moving violations, 24 for seat-belt violations, and six for drunk driving, Perez said.
He was commended by managers at Home Depot for his quick and efficient handling of a case, recovering rental equipment that had not been returned since mid-July, said Perez.
Hanna is also a report-writing instructor and instructor in standardized field-sobriety testing, said Perez.
• Paul C. Curtis, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 224) or pcurtis@kauaipubco.com.
