The Hawaiian gazette., 1908-01-28
KNITTED THREE /
POLICE OFFICERS
From Mondays Advertlser.l

The buckle OF special ofhcer Apana
police belt saved that gallant Chinaman
from death early yesterday morning,
DETECTING a sharp toad-stabber
knife from weIl-directed blow head
ed for his abdomen. The blade ripped
through his dark uniform coat and
sweater and was broken off on the
metal buckle Within a minute officer
Medeiros received painful wound from
the same knife in the biceps of his left
arm, while officer Espinda received a
slash across the third. finger of his left
hand. The wounds were made by
japanese. known as Naka, who is en-
ployed as a yard-boy by C. L. Wight
in Nuuanu valley. Officer Medeiros'
wound was dressed at the Queen s Hos
pital, some stitches being necessary to
close the cash.
The welding of the knife is due
probably TO Lopez and Rodrigues, the
Porto Rican jail-eseapes, being at large,
and the japanese installing the police
officers out on a gambling raid for foot
pads. The japanese gives two versions
of the affair, one being that he was
so drunk with sake that he doesn't re-
member what happened during the
night, and tie other, that he had heard
other Japanese commenting on articles
in the japanese papers of convicts who
had escaped from jail, being still at
large, and that he mistook the officers
for persons intent on doing him harm.
The officers had just left a place in
Nuuanu valley where they had in
vestigated a gambling place when they
saw japanese come down the valley
toward them. He approached the four
officers, Apana, Medeiros, Espinda and
Ali, and spoke to them in japanese.
He finally turned away and went up
the valley again, stopping on the veran-
da of a Chinese store. The officers, who
were on their way up the valley, also,
thought the action of the japanese
and thinking he might be the
Waterman for a gambling game, walked
up to him. Apana opened his search
light, which he turned on the face of
the japanese. Then opening his coat,
he turned the light on his police badge,
and said he was police officer, using
the japanese term for such. Suddenly
the japanese wheeled around and Off
Ger Apana felt something rip his coat
and he felt the impact of metal on a
hard substance in the vicinity of his
abdomen. He called out to the other
officers that be was cut The Japa-
nese ran away and the officers pursued.
As Medeiros came up the Jap struck
at him, the blade, with the point now
broken, entering his arm. Espinda then
took hand and in attempting to wrest
the knife from the man s hand was cut
on one of his fingers.
Apana considers that he had one of
the narrowest escapes of his eventful
and rather exciting police career.
Under the circumstances, the police
believing that the Japanese-who bears
a good character from his employer and
speaks no English-thought he.was be-
ing stood up by the Jail escapes, there
will be no prosecution.
Another attempt to stab police Off
Ger was made yesterday afternoon in
Iwilei, a japanese named Takahashi-
drawing a rusty jack knife on Officer
Leal and attempting TO interfere in an
arrest. An onloOker came to Leafs
assistance, being wounded in the hand
while Wrestling the knife away from
the japanese. Tekahashi is now under |
arrest, charged with an assault with a
deadly weapon.