A former Hawaii Police Department officer indicted last week for intimidating a witness in two high-profile criminal cases pleaded not guilty to five charges Tuesday in Kona Circuit Court.
Brian K. Miller, 56, was arrested and charged per the indictment with intimidating a witness, retaliating against a witness, witness tampering, second-degree terroristic threatening and harassment stemming from a May 14 incident in Hilo.
Miller, who turned himself in after the indictment, was released after posting $50,000 bail. Kona Circuit Chief Judge Robert D.S. Kim maintained the bail amount and set a trial date for Dec. 22 after Miller entered his plea.
Miller, a retired Hilo Vice detective, was indicted by a Kona grand jury for allegedly intimidating, threatening and/or retaliating against a female witness in a 2019 drug and conspiracy case against himself and in a separate 2019 case filed against another former police officer, Chadwick Fukui, and four civilians related to an illegal gambling operation. The harassment charge lists a male victim but does not state the offense is related to any criminal proceeding.
Intimidating and retaliating against a witness are Class C felonies punishable by up to five years imprisonment while the tampering, threatening and harassment offenses are petty misdemeanors that carry no more than 30 days in jail.
Miller is currently awaiting trial on charges stemming from a May 2019 indictment for allegedly stealing cocaine from a police evidence locker in Hilo in May 2016.
Miller — who’s also accused of tipping off Triple 7 arcade owners Lance and Stacey Yamada and two others about an Aug. 10, 2017, gambling raid and engaging in a conspiracy to hide or destroy gambling devices — is charged with first-degree promotion of a dangerous drug, second- and fourth-degree theft, obstructing government operations, two counts of second-degree hindering prosecution and four counts of tampering with physical evidence.
He pleaded not guilty to those charges on May 29, 2019. A firm trial date has yet to be set in that case.