HONOLULU — A man wanted in connection with the killing of three men was arrested Thursday after a massive search on Hawaii’s Big Island that left residents on edge.
Jacob Baker, 36, of Pahoa, Hawaii, was arrested on suspicion of murder, burglary and other charges after a search that included “substantial resources,” including assistance from state and federal authorities, police said. They described him as “armed and extremely dangerous.”
Authorities said they believe Baker was involved in the killings of three men: a 69-year-old man who was found partially submerged in a cement pond, a 79-year-old man who was found a few hundred feet (meters) away, and a third man, also 69 years old, whose body was found about 19 miles (31 kilometers) away.
The killings took place over two days on a remote and mostly rural part of the island, the largest in the Hawaiian chain with an area of more than 4,000 square miles (10,360 square kilometers). The area is a mix of tropical landscapes and barren lava fields.
Hawaii Police Chief Reed Mahona said in a news conference after the arrest that police received information Thursday afternoon that Baker was hiding in a grassy area and hiding as traffic passed. The police found him hiding in a small cave and arrested him.
Deborah Davis was driving home when she slowed down near where one of the people who were killed lived. That’s when she saw a policewoman chasing a man running down the road.
“I just stopped and thought, ‘This is him, this is the guy,'” she said.
The man ran down a grassy path and into the forest. After some screaming, a number of officers appeared with a shirtless man in handcuffs. She said the officers were shaking hands with each other and shouting “chi hoo,” a popular celebratory shout in Hawaii.
“They were very happy,” she said. “And I was so grateful. I was thanking them with tears in my eyes.”
Police said they had not determined a motive but were confident that Baker was involved in the three killings. Mahona did not release information about how police identified Baker as a suspect or what evidence might link him to the killings. He said investigators found no connection between the victims, except that two of them lived near each other.
The murders occurred just days after two women requested temporary restraining orders against Baker, saying he threatened and harassed them at the farm. One woman lived there and the other owned it. The judge rejected both requests, saying there was insufficient evidence of harassment.
One of the women alleged in her petition that Baker threatened to kill several women who were staying at the property, and caused a number of them to move or terminate their residency. It included a link to a video allegedly depicting at least one threat, but the link had either been removed or was incorrect as of Thursday.
The other woman alleged that Baker threatened the women and a disabled man, said he would trespass on the property, take items that did not belong to him, and said his intention was to take the property.
No attorney was listed for Baker, who has had 20 other cases on the court record over the past two decades, many of them traffic violations. In most of those cases, Baker represented himself.
Police identified the first victim as Robert Shine and the third victim as John Carse. The 79-year-old’s name was awaiting positive identification. Police said an autopsy showed that Shine had been strangled, and Kars died of blunt force trauma.
Police found Shine Monday night in a residence partially submerged in a cement pond, Mahona said. The 79-year-old was found dead Tuesday with blunt force injuries shortly after 12:30 p.m., Mahona said.
Later Tuesday, around 10 p.m., police responded to a property about 19 miles (31 kilometers) away on a welfare check request and found Kars dead.
Steven Shaffer said Baker lived on his ex-wife’s property in Puna, where they grew fruit, and Baker climbed coconut trees for her. But several months later, he said she requested a temporary restraining order against Baker. Shaffer said he did not know the details of their dispute, but that his ex-wife felt threatened by Baker and wanted him to leave.
“He looked to me like he was kind of angry,” said Shaffer, who lives in a separate residence on the same property. He added that others in the area were concerned about Baker, but did not provide details.
Donald Hyatt, a friend of two of the men killed and Shaffer’s ex-wife, said Baker left the cabin he was living in on the property months ago.
“He left the place in disarray,” Hyatt said. “Trash inside and out.”
Hyatt said Baker recently returned demanding “squatters’ rights” and threatened Shaffer’s ex-boyfriend. Hayat urged her to seek a restraining order.
Puna, on the eastern side of the island, is largely rural but rapidly growing and known for its affordable land. It’s also an area where lava flows have wiped out entire communities over the years.
Before the arrest, Puna resident Tiffany Edwards-Hunt said many in the community were on edge. She said she had never seen so many police cars in Pune before.
She added that many in the region live in poverty.
“We have people living in blue tarps in the woods in temporary homes,” Hunt said.
Puna is only 17 miles (27 kilometers) from Hilo, the main city east of Hawaii, but with unpaved roads in many parts of Puna, it can feel even further away.
“In this remote place, it’s chaos,” Hunt said.
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Collins reported from Hartford, Connecticut, and Lower reported from Philadelphia.