Hilo Couple Arrested and Charged with Numerous Offenses

A Hilo couple was arrested by Big Island Police Thursday (Mar. 5) after responding to a report of a man breaking into a vehicle.

Just after 7 a.m. Thursday morning, a concerned citizen witnessed a man breaking into a vehicle at the Hilo Bayfront area and confronted him.  The man left the scene in a vehicle being driven by a woman.  The vehicle was later tracked down by South Hilo patrol officers near the University of Hawai`i at Hilo.

At 7:50 a.m., 33-year-old Aubrey A. Harper, and 37-year-old Gregory P. Harper, both of Hilo, were arrested.  The couple were taken to the Hilo cellblock while Police continued the investigation.  Officers determined that the pair were involved in two separate burglary incidents reported earlier in the week in Puna.

On Sunday (Mar. 1), the caretaker of a Kalapana Seaview Estates home reported a man and woman leaving a home on Moaniala Street.  The couple left in a vehicle with things that were taken from the home.  On Monday (Mar. 2), a Leilani Estates women reported that her home on Malama Street had been broken into and robbed, citing a television and other items as missing.   Police were able to find and recover some of the items taken during these burglaries and link them back to the couple.

On Friday (Mar. 5), after consulting with the Prosecutor’s Office, Aubrey A. Harper was charged with two counts of first-degree burglary, second-degree theft, fourth-degree theft, reckless endangering in the second-degree, and a variety of traffic offenses. Her bail was set at $14,275.

Gregory P. Harper was charged with two counts of first-degree burglary, second-degree theft, unauthorized entry into a motor vehicle, theft in the fourth-degree, and resisting arrest. His bail was set at $14,750.

The couple appeared in court on Monday (Mar. 9).