Maui Hawaii Police Officer Killed in Confrontation with Armed Suspect

Maui is mourning the loss of police officer Suzanne O, who was fatally shot Friday night while responding to a terroristic threatening incident in Paia.

The Maui Police Department on Saturday identified O, a five-year veteran of the force, as the slain officer and praised her professionalism, courtesy and tact.

“Officer O served our community with courage, honor, and dedication, ” said MPD in a news release. “Her sacrifice will never be forgotten, and our MPD ohana is grieving alongside her family and loved ones. We ask the community to hold them in your thoughts and prayers during this most difficult time. Together, we will uphold the values Officer O exemplified, uniting to continue her legacy of service and dedication to our community.”

According to MPD, at about 8 :26 p.m. Friday, officers went to the Paia Sugar Mill off Baldwin Avenue after a call reporting that an unknown person had trespassed onto the property and fired a weapon at them.

“Upon arrival, officers encountered the armed suspect, who discharged a firearm, striking one of the responding officers, ” the news release said. “Officers returned fire, striking the suspect in the lower body.”

O was shot in the chest and despite lifesaving efforts, succumbed to her injuries.

The suspect, whose name was not released, received medical treatment and remains in custody, said MPD, sharing no further details Saturday except to say that the investigation is ongoing.

O is the first Maui police officer killed in the line of duty in more than 25 years. The last MPD officer who died on the job was Cerilo Agarano in November 1999, according to the department. Before that, four other Maui police officers since 1941 were killed while serving.

The state’s last duty-related death of a police officer occurred when Honolulu Police Department solo motorcycle officer Bill Sapolu died Aug. 8, 2023, from injuries suffered in a crash nearly a month earlier while en route to assist a fellow officer on a weapons call.

O also is the second female police officer in Hawaii killed in the line of duty. The first was Honolulu police officer, who was fatally shot while responding to a Jan. 19, 2020, call on Hibiscus Drive in the Diamond Head area. Fellow HPD officer Kaulike Kalama was gunned down in the same tragedy by a handyman who murdered his landlady and started a fire that destroyed five homes before killing himself.

Compassionate, genuine, honest

Maui Police Chief John Pelletier said in a statement, “Our department is heartbroken. We have lost one of our finest—an officer who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to our community. She was a hero, and we will ensure she is honored with the reverence she deserves. Our deepest condolences go out to her family, loved ones, and fellow officers during this time of profound loss.”

O joined the department in 2020, working first in the Kihei Patrol District before moving to the Wailuku Patrol District in December 2021, according to MPD. She was a proud member of the department’s Honor Guard and often volunteered for duty during high-demand periods, even on her days off or outside regular shifts, to help manage the district’s workload. She also supported the dispatch team during her off time, MPD said.

In a police recruitment video two years ago, O shared that she grew up in American Samoa and that part of the reason she wanted to become a police officer was to show her nieces back home that they had options in life.

“It provides for your family, and it gives you some sort of gratification that you go home, and you know that you helped someone, ” she said.

Her advice to other recruits was “always be courteous—it’s never wrong or it’s never a bad thing to be courteous to people—and show compassion always.”

MPD said O was awarded a Certificate of Merit “for her brave work ” during the Aug. 8, 2023, wildfires in the Upcountry area.

Her colleagues described her as “compassionate, genuine, honest and deeply dedicated to serving Maui County.” In her free time, “she enjoyed being with her niece and nephews, as family was always her top priority.”

Meanwhile, THE town of Paia on Maui’s north shore is reeling from the shock of violence in their quiet community. The former plantation-town-turned-popular-tourist-stop hosts residential neighborhoods, vacation rentals, a hostel, cafes and an eclectic collection of boutiques, eateries, yoga studios and surf shops.

Police closed Baldwin Avenue, the main road leading out of town up toward Makawao and beyond, overnight starting at about 9 :30 p.m. Friday to conduct their investigation.

“It’s very unusual, ” said Jefferson Santo, manager of the Paia Fish Market restaurant, which closed at 9 p.m. Friday. “It’s usually quiet, especially up the hill. Everyone’s shocked today.”

The restaurant is more than a mile away from the sugar mill, but Santo said he and employees saw police cars rushing past to get to the scene.

There are some concerns about homeless individuals in the area, but they do no harm, he said, and generally there are no major concerns about crime in the area.

A weekly dance group was reportedly at Heritage Hall, located across the street from the sugar mill, when gunshots rang out Friday night. Group members were told by police to shelter in place.

The nonprofit Heritage Hall is home to both the Portuguese and Puerto Rican cultural centers, which hold regular gatherings and events in the mostly peaceful neighborhood.

On Saturday morning, Island Fresh Cafe, also across the street from the sugar mill, opened as usual, offering breakfast fruit platters, loco moco dishes and banana bread French toast, and the Maui Yoga Shala studio next door held its “Maui Aloha Flow ” class as scheduled.

Nicol Nichols, stand-in manager of Island Fresh Cafe, said she was in “sheer shock ” to hear about the shooting.

“I think we all feel like Paia is a really safe community, ” she said, adding she’s been there 20 years. “Even though we have a lot of homeless, everyone kind of does their thing and no one hurts each other.”

The Paia Sugar Mill, formerly operated by the Hawaiian Commercial &Sugar Co.—a division of Alexander &Baldwin—was built in 1880. Considered “the heart of Paia, ” it produced sugar for generations before in 2000, marking the end of the plantation era.

The vacant property is currently undergoing revitalization efforts by the Paia Village Co., which formed in August 2020 with the goal of transforming it into a state-of-the art advanced manufacturing village.

Departments around Hawaii in mourning

Other county police departments in Hawaii and the police officers’ union honored the Maui officer slain in Friday’s fatal shooting.

SHOPO said in a statement Friday night that “a Maui police officer put on their police uniform today to start their shift, protecting the lives of the public. That officer did not finish their shift ; their life was stolen, cut way too short.”

“Tonight, a family is overcome with grief, a grief that will never totally leave them. The hearts of Maui police officers break as a fellow officer, their friend, a friend who does the very same job they do every day, did not go home. The 2, 700 sworn men and women of the SHOPO stand strong beside our brother and sister officers of the Maui Police Department. Too many of us have been here before. Our hearts and our prayers are with our officer’s family ; they will forever be part of our SHOPO family, a family that will not let the memory of their loved one fade or their ultimate sacrifice be made in vain.”

Interim HPD Police Chief Rade Vanic issued a statement expressing condolences to O’s loved ones and Maui’s law enforcement community.

“The loss is felt not only on Maui, but here in Honolulu as well, ” Vanic said. “As members of Hawaii’s law enforcement ohana, we stand together in grief and solidarity. The fallen officer served with honor, courage, and an unwavering commitment to protecting their community. Their sacrifice will not be forgotten.”

Reed Mahuna, acting chief of the Hawaii Police Department, said it “deeply mourns alongside our brothers and sisters in blue following the heartbreaking loss of a Maui Police Department officer killed in the line of duty.”

“In law enforcement, the bonds we share go beyond uniforms and badges—they are ties of service, sacrifice and ohana. When one of our ohana grieves, we all grieve, ” he said. “Our hearts are heavy yet steadfast in their support of the fallen officer’s family, colleagues and the Maui community. We stand shoulder to shoulder with Maui Police Department in these darkest of hours, honoring the brave sacrifice made and holding close the memory of your fallen officer.”

MPD said funeral and memorial service arrangements for O will be shared once finalized.

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