HPD Captain Named Leader for an International Investigators Association

Hawaiʻi Police Department’s Capt. Gregory Esteban has received the honorable distinction of being elected to a two-year term as President of the International Homicide Investigators Association (IHIA), an organization with over 2,600 members.

The IHIA, founded in 1988, is the world’s largest and fastest-growing organization of homicide and death investigation professionals. The nonprofit organization represents the largest network of homicide professionals and practitioners ever assembled. The IHIA has representatives in every US state and nations on six continents. The membership includes highly respected death and homicide investigators, criminal behaviorists, forensic scientists, crime scene technicians, crime and intelligence analysts, prosecutors, and others, many of whom are considered among the foremost experts in their respective fields and disciplines.

Esteban has been a member IHIA since 2012, its Western Regional Director since 2015, and recently completed a term as the Vice President of the organization.

Esteban mentioned that the time and travel distance has proven to be a bit of a challenge, but law enforcement in the 50th State has been on the receiving end of benefits as a result, notably bringing valuable homicide investigation training to the Big Island. An IHIA Basic Investigator Course was held on the Big Island in 2016 and again in 2018 with two additional courses planned for this year. The weeklong training classes include premier instructors from the field and draw law enforcement attendees not only from around the state but the U.S. mainland as well. Hosting this course locally has contributed to an increasing number of Department detectives and officers receiving the training, benefiting the community as a whole.

Captain Esteban is currently the commander of the Area I Criminal Investigation Division in Hilo and a 35-year veteran of the department. He is a graduate of the 246th Session of the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Virginia.