Souki Named East Hawai’i ‘Officer of the Month’

Officer Brian Souki was named “Officer of the Month” by the Aloha Exchange Club of East Hawai’i for the month of August.

Souki is a 10-year veteran of the Hawai’i Police Department. He was honored as Officer of the Month for unrelated felony arrests he made in Puna during the month of July.

On July 5, Souki responded to an unoccupied home in the Hawaiian Paradise Park subdivision that had been ransacked. When he arrived, he learned that items had been stolen and other items had been damaged, including a vehicle.

Souki spoke to residents as part of his investigation. During that time he spotted items in a garage that matched the description of items taken from the victim’s home.

After locating the items, Souki identified a 23-year-old man and five juveniles as suspects. The adult was arrested for burglary and unauthorized entry of a motor vehicle.

Souki also investigated a theft case on July 8 in the Orchidland Estates subdivision, where he noticed a man and woman sleeping in a car. He recognized the man as someone wanted on outstanding bench warrants and determined that the car had been stolen from a parking lot in Hilo two months earlier.

After the arrest, Souki scanned the inside of the vehicle visually and noticed drug paraphernalia that is known to be used with methamphetamine use. The discovery eventually led to additional arrests for drug offenses.

In a third investigation on July 17, Souki was patrolling in the Fern Forest subdivision when he observed an 18-year-old man that he recognized as being wanted for punching a man who confronted him a week earlier while the suspect was leaving a vacant house carrying a bag filled with 11 pounds of copper pipe.

Souki attempted to speak with the suspect, but the man fled into the bushes and tossed a fanny pack in the ferns. Souki caught up with the suspect, detained him, and recovered the fanny pack, which had 17.6 grams of dried marijuana, a glass smoking pipe with meth residue, and a straw. The man was arrested for theft, assault, promoting a detrimental drug, promoting a dangerous drug, and possessing drug paraphernalia.

At the “Officer of the Month” ceremony, acting Sergeant Nelson Acob, who nominated Souki, said he “truly demonstrated” the police department’s core values.

“Officer Souki is a diligent, observant, hardworking officer who is determined to follow any leads in identifying a suspect and solving a case,” Sgt. Acob wrote in nomination papers.

Now that he has been recognized as “Officer of the Month,” Souki is in the running for “Officer of the Year.”

The Aloha Exchange Club of East Hawai’i conducts the East Hawai’i “Officer of the Month” as a project.