HONOLULU (KHON2) — After deliberation, jurors in the Dennis Mitsunaga and Keith Kaneshiro corruption trial have reached a final verdict.
Nearly two years after the charges were filed, Kaneshiro and Mitsunaga initially took the stand in late March. All six defendants pleaded not guilty.
Federal prosecutors accused Kaneshiro of taking bribes in the form of campaign donations to “engineer a false criminal case” against a former employee.
The defense claimed the donations were legal and the theft charges were brought in good faith.
Officials said over $13,000 was donated to Kaneshiro’s campaign with an additional $34,000 donated by Mitsunaga and his associates.
In early April, the government’s key witness, Laurel Mau, testified on the list of “side jobs” compiled by Mitsunaga and Associates, Inc.
On April 16, federal prosecutors filed an emergency motion accusing the defense counsel of witness tampering and violating multiple protective orders.
Court documents stated that a Mitsunaga and Associates, Inc. employee provided the grand jury transcript to an upcoming witness to convince him to change his testimony at trial.
The jury has found Mitsunaga and Kaneshiro not guilty on all counts.