Officer Carvalho honored for apprehending two wanted felons with long rap sheets

For his “tenacious investigations” that led to the apprehension of two wanted felons with a slew of prior arrests, Hawaiʻi Island police officer Jayce Carvalho was honored as the East Hawaiʻi Officer of the Month for November 2022 by the Aloha Exchange Club of East Hawai‘i.

Carvalho, who has been on the force for five years, is temporarily assigned to the Hawai‘i Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Section Special Enforcement Unit. The unit is tasked with apprehending violent offenders and investigating crimes involving persons that pose a serious threat to community safety.

On Nov. 9, 2022, Carvalho was making checks at a residence in Pāhoa where wanted individuals tend to congregate when he saw a man with a power tool under a white Ford van that had no front license plate and a faded “V” on the hood.

Carvalho knew that a Ford van matching this description had been reported stolen from the Hāmākua area two days earlier, and that Malani Tavui was listed as a suspect in that investigation. After confirming that the van was stolen and the man under the van was Tavui, Carvalho arrested Tavui and recovered the van. 

A .38 caliber revolver was recovered after executing a search warrant on the van. Tavui, a convicted felon who is prohibited from owning or possessing any firearms or ammunition, was later charged with several offenses.

In a second investigation, Carvalho tied together several crimes that took place in east and west Hawai‘i. He identified and arrested a suspect, Cyrus Kapeli-Spencer, who was charged with numerous theft offenses.

On Nov. 25, 2022, Hilo patrol officers responded to a vehicle break-in at a private club in the Keaukaha area of Hilo after a woman reported that she had confronted an unknown man in her vehicle at the facility. The man reportedly removed her purse, along with several of her personal belongings, fleeing the area in a black Ford Edge.

Taking over the investigation, Carvalho identified Kapeli-Spencer as the suspect and was able to link the Ford Edge to a vehicle break-in at Kua Bay, just north of Kona, on Nov. 21, 2022. In the Kua Bay case, suspect(s) had broken into the rental vehicle of a 56-year-old woman and her 12-year-old son who were visiting the island and removed multiple items, including credit cards. Police determined the victim’s credit card was used at a retail establishment in Kona by Destanyie Calicdan, who Carvalho knew to be the girlfriend of  Kapeli-Spencer.  

On Nov. 28, 2022, police learned the black Ford Edge was at the Kona courthouse and responding patrol officers saw Kapeli-Spencer and Calicdan in the area. Officers arrested Calicdan relative to the Kua Bay incident, however, when they attempted to stop Kapeli-Spencer, who was driving the Ford Edge, he fled the scene. 

Two days later, Hilo patrol officers arrested Kapeli-Spencer and recovered the Ford Edge. In the course of his investigation, Carvalho determined the Ford Edge belonged to a car rental company in Kona and that the establishment was unaware the vehicle was missing. A theft investigation was initiated. Kapeli-Spencer was charged with several offenses.

Every month the Aloha Exchange Club of East Hawai‘i honors a police officer in East Hawaiʻi as their officer of the month. Officers are nominated by their supervisors from the police districts in Area I, including Hāmākua, North Hilo, South Hilo and Puna, and a winner is selected. All officers selected for Officer of the Month are eligible to be selected as the Aloha Exchange Club of East Hawai‘i Officer of the Year.