Hanama‘ulu man faces 224 felony charges

LIHU‘E — A Hanama‘ulu man is facing 224 charges ranging from burglary to credit card fraud and identity theft.

Pohaku Matsuura, 35, was arraigned in 5th Circuit Court on Tuesday and entered not guilty pleas on all counts. He is represented by State Public Defender Stephanie Sato, who replaced Christian Enright in an earlier appearance.

County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Rebecca Sato presented the indictment that includes 179 counts of unauthorized possession of confidential personal information. He is also charged with first-degree burglary, two counts of second-degree burglary, three counts of second-degree identity theft, eight counts of credit card theft and eight counts of credit card forgery.

According to the indictment, Matsuura is alleged to have stolen confidential information from more than 100 individuals between July 29 and Sept. 13, 2011. These include credit cards and checks from hotels, businesses and vehicles that would be used to make unauthorized purchases. 

The remaining charges include attempted unauthorized entry into a dwelling, first-degree unauthorized entry, eight counts of second-degree theft, third-degree identity theft, third-degree theft, eight counts of attempted second-degree theft, resisting arrest, second-degree assault against a law enforcement officer and theft of utilities.

Matsuura faces a possible 10 years of imprisonment and $25,000 fine for each of the class B felony theft and burglary offenses. The forgery, credit card theft and unauthorized possession charges are class C felonies and carry a possible $10,000 fine and five years of imprisonment on each count.

Judge Kathleen Watanabe set bail at $250,000. Matsuura remains in custody, and a March 5 jury trial was scheduled.

• Tom LaVenture, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 224) or tlaventure@thegardenisland.com.