Court documents identified the three Kona patrol officers police say were endangered by a Kailua-Kona couple apprehended Thursday in Volcano after an early morning crime spree culminated in a cross-island manhunt.
The officers are identified as Gyasi Williams — the officer narrowly missed by a rifle bullet that struck and damaged his windshield — Troyson Reilly and Charles Caldwell-Kaai.
The rifle allegedly was fired by 27-year-old Dylan K. Alcain, who’s charged with attempted first-degree murder, use of a firearm in the commission of a separate felony, carrying a loaded firearm on a public roadway, armed robbery, first-degree theft, unauthorized control of a stolen vehicle, property damage, terroristic threatening, resisting an order to stop, and three counts of first-degree burglary.
The alleged getaway driver and accomplice is Alcain’s wife, 35-year-old Leilani D.A. Alcain. She was charged with attempted first-degree murder, armed robbery, use of a firearm in the commission of a separate felony, carrying a loaded firearm on a public highway, first-degree theft, unauthorized control of a stolen vehicle, first-degree terroristic threatening, property damage, resisting an order to stop, and two counts of first-degree burglary.
The most serious charge, attempted first-degree murder, carries a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
The couple made their initial court appearances separately on Monday.
Dylan Alcain’s bail was maintained at $725,000 by Kona District Judge Kimberly Taniyama, and he was ordered to appear at 8:30 a.m. today for a preliminary hearing. However, a Kona grand jury indicted him with the same charges, so his case will be moved to Kona Circuit Court, where he’ll likely be arraigned in the courtroom of Third Circuit Chief Judge Robert Kim.
Taniyama also maintained bail for Leilani Alcain — who was originally identified by police as Leilani Parent, a previous married name — at $145,000 and ordered her to appear for a preliminary hearing today at 8:30 p.m. She apparently was not indicted by the grand jury panel that indicted her husband.
According to documents, the pair burglarized two Hele gas stations early Thursday. The first was at about 1:50 a.m. at the Kailua-Kona station on Kanalani Street, where the glass front door was reportedly broken. The second alleged burglary was at the Captain Cook station at about 4:20 a.m.
A gray BMW sedan allegedly driven by Leilani Alcain was linked to both break-ins, police said. The shots that damaged Williams’ taxpayer-subsidized vehicle were allegedly fired during the getaway from the Captain Cook gas station.
The BMW was later spotted on Mamalahoa Highway heading toward Kailua-Kona, according to police.
As the sedan passed Napoopoo Road, Dylan Alcain allegedly fired shots that struck Reilly’s vehicle near the driver-side door, and additional shots were fired that allegedly threatened the life of Caldwell-Kaai, according to documents.
None of the officers were injured, none discharged their firearms, and the pursuit was terminated in the interest of public safety, police said.
According to documents, at about 5:10 a.m., a man identified in court documents as Thomas Gaul reported his red Ford Explorer sport-utility vehicle was stolen on Huna Kai Road by a man with a rifle and a female accomplice. The BMW sedan was found abandoned nearby.
The manhunt was on, and shortly after 11 a.m., the pair was taken into custody without a fight after the department’s SWAT unit surrounded a home in Volcano. Gaul’s SUV was recovered at the scene.
In addition to the crime spree on April 20, Dylan Alcain also was indicted for first-degree burglary for a break-in at a Texaco gas station on Waikoloa Road in Waikoloa.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
