HONOLULU (KHON2) — The man accused of setting a Nānākuli residence on fire on Oct. 7 was charged with Arson in the First Degree, court documents said.
The Honolulu Fire Department responded to the Oct. 7 fire at approximately 3:12 p.m., with the Honolulu Police Department also called in for assistance.
The incident was reported by a neighbor who said she saw the suspect, Keith Mahoe, enter a shed area at the residence, court documents said.
Shortly after seeing him enter the shed, the witness said that she had observed black smoke coming from the shed, and Mahoe leaving the area.
The witness’s daughter called police while she alerted her neighbors to evacuate their homes.
During the fire, a second neighbor had attempted to extinguish the blaze with his garden hose. The second neighbor also witnessed Mahoe near the scene, allegedly neglecting to fight or report the fire.
According to another neighbor and lifelong friend of the suspect, the affected unit had once belonged to Mahoe’s deceased parents, to which he is now the sole owner and tenant of.
HFD extinguished the fire and launched an investigation into its origin, where they were able to determine that the fire had originated in the yard and found the presence of accelerants at the scene.
Later on Oct. 7, Mahoe was arrested after neighbors reported seeing him near the scene to police for two unrelated warrants. Upon further investigation, police were able to again arrest Mahoe, this time on suspicion of arson.
Court documents said that Mahoe was transported to the hospital for medical clearance, to which Mahoe allegedly said, “Yea I’m bipolar and I burned my parent’s place down.”
Mahoe is now being held on $100,000 bail.