A man who has been called a “violent psychopath” escaped from Hawaii’s state psychiatric hospital and boarded a flight to California, KGMB Hawaii News Now reports.
Randall Saito, who was found not guilty of murder by reason of insanity in 1979, exited the State Hospital in Kaneohe near Honolulu on Sunday. He got into a cab and boarded a charter plane to Maui, then boarded another flight to San Jose, Calif., sources told the station.
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It is not known whether Saito is still in California, though he reportedly has family there. Multiple federal agencies, including the FBI and U.S. Marshals, are executing a manhunt to locate him.
“He is a very dangerous individual,” Wayne Tashima, a prosecutor who worked to keep Saito from receiving passes to leave the hospital unattended in 2015, told KGMB.
Anyone who may see Saito is warned not to approach him, and is only urged to call police with information.
“Because he committed a murder, no matter how long ago it was, he still has ability and inherent ability to do another murder or violent crime,” Tashima said.
It was also announced Tuesday that the Hawaii Attorney General’s office charged Saito with felony escape and issued a $500,000 bench warrant for his arrest. This arrest can be enforced by all 50 U.S. states.
Saito has been a patient of the hospital since 1981 after being acquitted in the violent murder of Sandra Yamashiro, who appeared to be a random target. Her body was found in her car at a Honolulu shopping mall, but she had been shot and repeatedly stabbed.
In 1993, a court denied Saito’s request for conditional release, reasoning that he continued to suffer from sexual sadism and necrophilia.
Defense attorneys looked to have Saito released from the institution in 2000, but deputy city prosecutor Jeff Albert objected the motion. He claimed Saito “fills all the criteria of a classic serial killer.”
As of Tuesday, Saito was still considered to be at large and is considered to be a danger to civilians.
