Police haven’t yet identified any suspects in the homicide of 36-year-old George Edward “Eddie” Dodge.
Dodge’s badly decomposed body was discovered on July 27 in a shallow grave along a remote side road off Highway 11, south of the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park boundary and northeast of Pahala.
“We’re still working on this and trying to piece everything together,” police Capt. Rio Amon-Wilkins of the Hilo Criminal Investigation Division said Monday.
Dodge, of Mountain View, had been reported missing on July 7 after not being seen or heard from for a couple weeks.
The initial autopsy performed July 29 listed the manner of death as homicide.
Due to the condition of Dodge’s body, he had to be identified by means of DNA comparison.
“Because of the missing person case, we interviewed a handful of acquaintances of his prior to the discovery of the body,” Amon-Wilkins said.
“When we were led to the location of the body, we — based on the timeframe for missing person cases — felt there was a good possibility that it was him.
“But, obviously, we needed to do the DNA comparison to confirm that.”
The final autopsy report is still pending, and Amon-Wilkins said he’ll wait for that before commenting on the cause of death.
Dodge apparently was still alive as of June 17, because court records indicate he was cited on that date for traffic infractions in Puna.
Court records indicate no criminal convictions for Dodge in Hawaii.
Dodge is, however, listed as the respondent in a civil case in Family Court alleging domestic abuse and seeking an order for protection.
Court records indicate the case is active, but an attempt to view court documents online produced a disclaimer that reads, “The case you are attempting to view is confidential and not public record at this time.”
The investigation continues, and police ask anyone who may have relevant information about this case to contact Detective Jeremy Kubojiri at (808) 961-2378 or Jeremy.Kubojiri@hawaiicounty.gov, or to call the police department’s nonemergency number at (808) 935-3311,
Those who prefer to remain anonymous may call Crime Stoppers number at (808) 961-8300 and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
