PĀHOA, HI – Following a tense, days-long manhunt, Hawaii Island police captured a 36-year-old suspect on Thursday in connection with the brutal killings of three elderly men in the Puna District.
The Arrest in Kaimu Cove
Acting on a citizen’s tip, authorities arrested Jacob Daniel Baker after a resident spotted him ducking down in a grassy field to avoid passing traffic. Baker fled from responding officers but was ultimately located and detained inside a small cave in the Kaimu Cove area.
Baker, who had been described by law enforcement as “extremely dangerous,” was unarmed at the time of his arrest. He faces multiple charges, including:
- Second-degree murder
- First-degree burglary
- Theft and unauthorized entry into a motor vehicle
Three Victims Found in Puna District
The arrest brings a close to a terrifying week for the rural east coast community. Between Monday and Tuesday, three elderly men were found dead in separate locations:
- Robert Shine, 69: Discovered Monday night, partially submerged in a man-made pond. While initially suspected to be a medical emergency, an autopsy confirmed he was strangled.
- Unidentified Victim, 79: Found Tuesday afternoon at a home in Pāhoa, just 400 to 500 feet away from Shine’s property. He sustained severe blunt force injuries.
- John Carse, 69: Found Tuesday night during a welfare check in an area 19 miles away. An autopsy revealed he died from sharp force trauma.
The Investigation and Local Relief
Hawaii Police Chief Reed K. Mahuna stated that investigators are confident Baker is responsible for all three homicides, though a clear motive or overarching connection between all three victims has not yet been established.
A neighbor reported encountering Baker shortly after the first body was discovered, noting that the suspect was shouting incoherently and screaming, “Bob’s dead.”
The arrest has brought massive relief to the tight-knit Puna community, where many residents live in open properties without locks on their doors. Chief Mahuna credited the safe conclusion of the manhunt to the alert citizen who “saw something and said something.”
