4 soldiers killed in Afghanistan
HONOLULU (AP) — U.S. Army officials say four soldiers based at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii were killed last week when a Black Hawk helicopter crashed in Afghanistan.
The Taliban claimed they gunned down the Black Hawk, leading to the crash on Thursday.
Army officials said Monday that among the seven Americans and four Afghans killed were: 37-year-old Chief Warrant Officer Brian Hornsby of Melbourne, Fla., 29-year-old Chief Warrant Officer Suresh Krause of Cathedral City, Calif., 41-year-old Sgt. Luis Galbreath of San Juan, Puerto Rico, and 23-year-old Sgt. Richard Essex of Kelseyville, Calif.
The soldiers identified were part of Schofield’s 25th Infantry Division.
The crash happened during a firefight with insurgents in a remote area of southern Afghanistan. It’s one of the deadliest air disasters of a war now into its second decade.
Not guilty plea in infant’s death
HONOLULU (AP) — A former Hawaii Marine and his girlfriend accused of letting their 14-month-old son die after his skull was fractured have been released on $25,000 bail.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Song says David Lonergan and Tracy Mattos pleaded not guilty on Monday to involuntary manslaughter in the death of Zayden Lonergan.
Song says their trial has been set for Jan. 15.
The indictment alleges the couple didn’t immediately get medical treatment for the child in February 2011. The infant was rushed to a Hawaii base fire station and remained unconscious until he died.
The Honolulu medical examiner’s office ruled the death a homicide, with the cause of death “complications of cranial cerebral injuries due to abusive head trauma.”
Concerns about postal worker
LIHUE, Kauai (AP) — A Kauai postal worker’s mental history is raising concerns about how he was able to acquire an arsenal of firearms.
Troy Hamura was recently charged with firearms offenses after an unregistered fully automatic machine gun and 18 other firearms were taken from his Lihue home.
Agents also seized 30 registered firearms and more than 23,000 rounds of ammunition.
According to a prosecutor, the former federally licensed gun dealer suffers from manic depression and bipolar disorders.
His lawyer says his client’s mental issues never rose to a level that would have prevented him from owning guns.
Prosecutors say Hamura used the postal service to intercept a rifle he ordered from a Florida gun dealer, using someone else’s federal firearms license without permission.
