Police probe alleged stabbing in Kahului

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KAHULUI - A Kahului man was in critical condition Monday afternoon after allegedly being stabbed in his home.

Police said they arrested a 23-year-old Kahului woman for investigation of second-degree attempted murder.

The 33-year-old victim was taken to Maui Memorial Medical Center, where he underwent surgery.

A large bandage was placed over his lower abdomen as he was wheeled out on a stretcher from his rented home.

"He didn't look good," said neighbor Corrina Namoku after seeing the victim leave in an ambulance.

Neighbors of the 107 W. Kauai St. residence, where the incident was reported around 2 p.m., said they heard a man and woman arguing sometime after 1 p.m. They said they realized the argument had become violent after they heard emergency sirens, and police and medics arrived at the one-bedroom home.

Police immediately cordoned off the residence with yellow tape and began interviewing neighbors, including Namoku and her 20-year-old daughter, Andrea.

Lt. Wallace Tom of the Maui Police Department confirmed police were investigating an alleged stabbing.

"We heard them fighting," Andrea Namoku said, referring to the stabbing victim and the woman he lives with. The Namokus and the couple rent from the same landlord, who owns two neighboring homes at the corner of South Oahu and West Kauai streets.

The Namokus moved into their home in November and shared a trash bin with the victim they know only by his first name. "We'd wave and say, 'Hi,' " Andrea Namoku said.

She said their landlord, who lives on Oahu, told them at one point that the man and his girlfriend living next door had been tenants for about four years.

Andrea Namoku said she never heard the couple arguing until Monday afternoon.

"We were kind of shocked. Nothing like this has ever happened. They always seemed like nice people," she said.

Corrina Namoku said she did not know the name of the woman living next door until Monday afternoon when she heard her male neighbor yell it out during the argument. Namoku said she heard the man and woman argue about who should leave the home.

"And then it was quiet. I just never thought anything after that," Corrina Namoku said.

A short time later, Namoku said she saw the woman drive away in a brown Ford Taurus toward Puunene Avenue. Andrea Namoku said she thought it was unusual because she'd seen only the man drive the three vehicles kept by the couple at the property.

Within 10 minutes after the woman left, sirens could be heard approaching and Corrina Namoku saw medics wheeling her neighbor, who was wearing shorts but no shirt, out on a stretcher.

"He's a nice guy," Andrea Namoku said. "I hope he's going to be OK."

As of 6:30 p.m., police did not have details of the incident.

* Claudine San Nicolas can be reached at claudine@mauinews.com.