Pahoa man accused of crime spree that included stolen cars, ice cream

A 27-year-old Pahoa man pleaded not guilty Monday to 27 charges resulting from a crime spree alleged to have taken place late last month.

Ashton Silva-Cuba is charged with first- and second-degree burglary, attempted second-degree theft, fraudulent use of a credit card, three counts each of unauthorized entry to a motor vehicle and unauthorized control of a motor vehicle, six counts of credit card theft, and 10 counts of unauthorized possession of confidential personal information.

Two of the charges are Class B felonies punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment. The remainder are Class C felonies that carry a potential five-year prison term.

A store detective at the Hilo Walmart called police Thursday morning and told them Silva-Cuba made a purchase of more than $600 using a credit card belonging to someone else, according to court documents. Police contacted the credit card owner, who told them he had lost his wallet the previous day and had contacted First Hawaiian Bank to dispute another charge of more than $650, also made at Walmart.

Silva-Cuba told police he had taken the wallet from a backpack from a Ford pickup truck in Cuba, according to the documents. Silva-Cuba also allegedly confessed to taking a wallet from a Chevrolet Camaro in upper Puna and obtained the keys to a Nissan Frontier pickup truck and attempted to steal the truck, but was unable to drive a manual transmission.

Among several other crimes Silva-Cuba allegedly confessed to include entering a home on Volcano Road by removing jalousie windows and taking a backpack that contained a wallet with a credit card, stealing a 2008 Scion XD hatchback from a Railroad Avenue home, stealing a 2017 Nissan Versa sedan from another Hilo home, and swiping two axes, a pair of bolt-cutters, a pot roast and ice cream from the Hawaiian Paradise Park Fire Station.

Hilo District Judge Harry Freitas maintained Silva-Cuba’s bail at $285,000 and ordered him to appear at 2 p.m. Wednesday for a preliminary hearing.

According to court documents, Silva-Cuba is on probation for a felony drug conviction.