Man with loaded sawed-off shotgun, rifle arrested in Bayfront Soccer Fields parking lot

A 32-year-old Puna man, Nainoa Kaluhiwa, has been arrested and charged for being in possession of a loaded, sawed-off 12-gauge shotgun and a rifle of unknown make and model after police contacted him while seated within a vehicle parked in the parking lot at the Bayfront Soccer Fields in Hilo on Feb. 29.

Officers later obtained a search warrant before recovering both firearms and ammunition from within the vehicle.

Kaluhiwa made his initial appearance on Monday afternoon in Hilo District Court. His bail was maintained at $79,000 and he was ordered to appear for a preliminary hearing on March 7.

Kaluhiwa has been charged with ownership prohibited, carrying or possessing a loaded firearm on a public highway, place to keep loaded firearms other than pistols and revolvers, place to keep unloaded firearms other than pistols and revolvers, place to keep ammunition and two counts of registration mandatory.

Carrying or possessing a loaded firearm on a public highway and place to keep loaded firearms are both class B felony offenses punishable by either a ten-year prison term or four years probation and up to eighteen months in jail.

Ownership prohibited is a class C felony offense punishable by a five-year prison term.