LIHUE — Two male subjects were taken into police custody Wednesday afternoon after a rifle was found in their vehicle while parked at Kauai High School. The men are not affiliated with the school. Roscoe Fernandez, 21, of Waimea, was
LIHUE — Two male subjects were taken into police custody Wednesday afternoon after a rifle was found in their vehicle while parked at Kauai High School. The men are not affiliated with the school.
Roscoe Fernandez, 21, of Waimea, was arrested and has since been released pending investigation.
The driver of the vehicle, a 16-year-old Kekaha resident, was also detained by police before being released to his father. The incident occurred shortly before noon Wednesday, when the school’s security guard notified the school resource officer that a suspicious vehicle was parked in a teacher parking lot on school property.
The police officer located the two males sitting in a Subaru SUV and observed what appeared to be a rifle bag in the backseat.
Officers confirmed that the bag contained a loaded rifle. Both males were taken into custody for violating place to keep pistol (HRS 134-25), a class B felony.
“The Kauai Police Department takes these types of incidents very seriously and is committed to preventing school violence and ensuring the safety and well-being of our island’s youth,” Kauai Police Chief Darryl Perry stated in a press release.
Perry later followed up his original statement with an additional one on gun control.
“More has to be done about gun violence as we mourn another massacre in Oregon; the answer is not more guns, but stronger laws against its acquisition coupled with the political will to support change, to protect our children and all innocent victims.”
The case remains under investigation.
Anyone with information is asked to call Lt. Mark Ozaki at 241-1688 or Kauai CrimeStoppers, 246-8300.
