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Canadian pleads guilty to posing as airline pilot in wire fraud case

A Canadian man has pleaded guilty in federal court to wire fraud after admitting he posed as a commercial airline pilot to obtain hundreds of free flights on three U.S.-based airlines. According to federal prosecutors, Dallas Pokornik, 34, of Toronto admitted using a fictitious airline employee ID card to secure the flights between January 2020 and Oct. 28, 2024. Prosecutors said Pokornik, a former flight attendant for a Canadian airline, was indicted in October 2025, arrested in Panama and extradited to Hawaii to face the charges. Under his plea agreement, Pokornik agreed to pay ...

MPD to honor Officer Suzanne O while promoting bill named in her honor

The Maui Police Department is inviting the community to participate in a series of sign-waving events Aug. 10-15 to honor Officer Suzanne O on the one-year anniversary of her death and encourage passage of legislation named in her honor. Officer O was shot and killed Aug. 15, 2025, while ...

Photo of the Day: A mother’s love

Send your best photos from Maui County to mauiphotos@mauinews.com for a chance to see them featured on our website and in our weekly print edition.

Two men charged with murder after Kahului assault; effort underway to help victim’s family

​​Two men have been charged with second-degree murder, first-degree robbery and second-degree assault after a 71-year-old man was fatally wounded in an attack Thursday night in Kahului, according to Maui police. Dispatch received a report of an assault involving a possible firearm at about 11:12 p.m. near Lalo and Hukilike streets. Police said Alfred Kailihiwa, 71, and his 73-year-old sister had been driving in the area to feed stray cats when they encountered two men and a woman who confronted them about the use of bright headlights. A GoFundMe organized on behalf of Kailihiwa’s ...

Bissen, Sugimura advance to general election in race for Maui County Mayor

Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen is headed into the November general election after leading Saturday’s primary by more than 12 percentage points, according to the most recent preliminary voting results. In a race where Bissen received 15,709 votes to Maui County Council Vice Chair Yuki Lei Sugimura's 11,438, only 2.7% cast blank votes in the primary. In the Maui County Council races, blank votes ranged from 15.7% to 18.2%. The third vote-getter, P. Denise La Costa, received 11.6%, or 3,940 votes — votes that could shift elsewhere in the general election, along with those cast for ...

Veterans council to host patriotic luncheon

The Maui County Veterans Council will hold its Second Annual Patriotic Community Luncheon on Aug. 15 at the Rainbow Ballroom at Maui Beach Hotel, 170 W. Kaahumanu Ave. in Kahului. The “Bring on the ’90s!” fundraiser will celebrate America’s 250th birthday and include patriotic entertainment, silent and live auctions and a best-dressed ’90s contest. Veterans, military families and community members are invited. Tickets are $40 for veterans, $45 for active-duty military members and spouses, and $60 for community supporters. Proceeds will support Maui County Veterans Council ...