Parents of Hawaii Suspect Anguished
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Associated
Press news wire:
Parents of Hawaii Suspect Anguished
By BRUCE DUNFORD
HONOLULU (AP) - Hiro Uyesugi remembers his son losing his temper only
once
during 15 years at the Xerox Corp., when he kicked an elevator door a
few years
ago and had to undergo anger management counseling.
But nothing in Byran Uyesugi's history hinted at the bloodshed that
erupted at
Xerox's offices on Tuesday, when police say he walked into a
second-floor
meeting room and shot seven co-workers to death.
Uyesugi fled in a company van, but surrendered to police after a
five-hour
standoff. A search of his home found 11 handguns, five rifles and two
shotguns
owned by the former Roosevelt High School rifle team member.
``I'm going to bring him another gun so he can shoot himself,'' an
anguished
Hiro Uyesugi snapped when questioned by reporters.
The nation's latest episode of workplace violence was the worst tragedy
in the
company's history and the worst mass murder in Hawaii's history. It was
a
stunning blow in a state with just 24 murders last year and an enduring
reputation as America's paradise.
``You would never think it would happen at your workplace. You hear it
all
around,'' said Andy De Leon, a Xerox employee. ``But this is too close,
way too
close.''
Uyesugi, 40, was expected to be arraigned today. Because multiple deaths
were
involved, he will likely face a first-degree murder charge, punishable
by a
mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Hawaii
has no death penalty.
Uyesugi, who fixed copiers at Xerox, was clad in a green Hawaii print
shirt
when he entered the building shortly after 8 a.m. KITV-TV, citing
unidentified
sources, said Uyesugi was on his way to a meeting when he shot two men,
missed
a third, and then shot five more.
``We all heard this banging noise, like a hammer hitting on a piece of
metal,''
De Leon said. ``We didn't think anything of it then. Then all of a
sudden a
boss called out and said, `Follow us' and we started running out.
``Someone asked what happened and he said somebody got shot upstairs.''
Uyesugi left the building and waved goodbye to another co-worker before
driving
off.
Five victims were slain in a conference room and two other bodies were
found
nearby. All had been shot with a 9 mm handgun at close range,
authorities said.
Police found 20 9 mm shell casings at the scene.
The victims were identified as Melvin Lee, 58; Ron Kawamae, 54; Ron
Kataoka,
50; Peter Mark, 46; Ford Kanehira, 41; John Sakamoto, 36; and Jason
Balatico,
33.
Uyesugi and the company van were spotted by a jogger at a nature park
overlooking downtown. After hours of negotiations with authorities, he
finally
surrendered.
``Like all of us at Xerox, you undoubtedly have the question, `Why? How
could
this have happened?'' Xerox Hawaii general manager Glenn Sexton said.
``Perhaps
we'll never know.''
Uyesugi lived on Easy Street with his father and brother, raising fish
in back
yard tanks and collecting guns. Neighbors described him as ``a good
boy'' and
``a real nice kid.''
However, he was convicted of drunken driving in 1985. He was named in a
criminal property damage complaint in 1993 when he threatened a
supervisor and
damaged the elevator door, KITV-TV reported.
Police would not comment on a motive. But Mayor Jeremy Harris said it
appeared
``as though it was a disgruntled employee who snapped.''
``It's a shock for all of us. We have such a safe community with almost
no
violent crime,'' Harris said. ``To have someone snap like this and
murder seven
people is just absolutely appalling.
(PROFILE (CO:Xerox Corp; TS:XRX; IG:OFF;)
AP-NY-11-03-99
----------------------------------------------------------
Fatal Shootings Concern Hawaii
By JEAN CHRISTENSEN Associated Press Writer
HONOLULU (AP) -- Within an hour of the worst mass murder in Hawaii
history,
local politicians were on national television stressing the abnormality
of such
violence in the Aloha State.
That reflex underscored the keen image-consciousness of a state fed more
by
tourism dollars than anything else.
Police believe Xerox Corp. employee Byran Uyesugi, 40, shot seven fellow
copier
technicians at his office building Tuesday before fleeing in a company
van. He
surrendered later in the day after a five-hour standoff with police.
``This is such a shock for us,'' Honolulu Mayor Jeremy Harris said.
``This is
not the kind of violence that we have in our community. Last year in
Honolulu,
although we're the 11th largest city in the nation, we only had a total
of 17
homicides. And here in one brutal act, seven of our citizens lay dead.''
Gov. Ben Cayetano, while ordering the state flag flown at half-staff,
said the
shootings had ``disrupted the calm of our islands.''
While making the rounds of the news shows, politicians, police and fire
officials noted that the crime happened in industrial district far from
Waikiki, which gets the bulk of Hawaii's 6.7 million annual visitors.
Tourism was an $11.6 billion industry last year. It generates a third of
the
state's gross product and creates a third of its jobs.
But the visitor industry has been dealt a blow by the recent Asian
financial
crisis, which has hampered Hawaii's recovery from a nine-year economic
slump.
In separate interviews, City Council Chairman Jon Yoshimura and
Councilman Andy
Mirikitani both mentioned Honolulu's low violent crime rate and the fact
that
tourists were not endangered.
Fire Capt. Richard Soo did the same.
Experts say Hawaii is one of the safest states in terms of violent
crime,
though it does have the fourth-highest property crime rate in the
nation.
Honolulu is listed as the least violent of the nation's 20 largest
cities in
the FBI's Uniform Crime Reports for 1998. Murder, rape and aggravated
assault
figures for Honolulu were ranked lowest of all cities surveyed.
The city and county of Honolulu, which includes the entire island of
Oahu, is
considered the nation's 10th-largest city in the report, with a
population of
880,272.
There were 24 murders last year in all of Hawaii, which has a population
of 1.2
million.
``Whenever you talk about these atypical murders -- mass murder and
serial
killings -- they really do sort of travel in a different trajectory than
your
normal crime,'' University of Hawaii criminologist Meda Chesney-Lind
said.
``You try to make sense of them the best way that you can, but the
typical news
about Hawaii crime is that it's going down like the rest of the
mainland, and
our violent crime is going down.''
While such tragedies are rare in Hawaii, Chesney-Lind said the public
should
make an effort to learn lessons from them.
``I think we should all realize that like violence in the home, violence
in the
workplace is an increasing problem,'' she said. ``Our violent crime rate
is so
much lower than comparable cities on the mainland, I think we get lulled
into
thinking we have no problem at all.''
AP-NY-11-03-99
----------------------------------------------------------
Kids in Middle of Hawaii Nightmare
By BEN DiPIETRO
Associated Press Writer
HONOLULU (AP)--The first-graders from Iliahi Elementary School were
supposed to
spend the day viewing the serene surroundings at the Hawaii Nature
Center.
Instead, they were in the middle of a potentially explosive scene as the
suspect in the mass killings at Xerox Corp. negotiated his surrender in
the
park with authorities.
Xerox copier repairman Byran Uyesugi arrived at the park Tuesday morning
after
he allegedly shot and killed seven co-workers and escaped in a company
vehicle.
As negotiators worked, a Hawaii National Guard armored personnel carrier
was
hauled to the area in case the children needed to be evacuated.
Instead, they hiked out through a back trail.
They were met by rifle-toting officers, who escorted them out in two
police
vans and a small yellow school bus. The children waved as they passed
down the
street, unaware of how close they were to danger.
``They thought it was a game,'' said Jennie Peterson, an instructor at
the
center.
Earlier, a group of fourth-graders from Hickam Elementary School were
bused to
safety after hiking about a mile away from the center.
Negotiators using a bullhorn tossed a cellular telephone next to the
van. The
40-year-old Uyesugi grabbed the phone, returned to the van and began
talking
with the police. His brother, Dennis, arrived to help with negotiations.
``Just come out. Let me help you, that's what I'm here for,'' a
negotiator
said. ``Come out and talk.''
Before police arrived to evacuate nearby homes, media, residents and
others had
staked out vantage points within 150 yards of the van, putting
themselves in
potential danger. A half-mile away, some residents even set up lounge
chairs to
watch the drama unfold.
``It was probably kind of stupid because ... let's just say he had an
automatic
weapon and came out from behind the van and sprayed,'' said David
Wallace, who
was riding his motorcycle when he happened upon the commotion. ``We were
definitely in the line of fire.''
Five hours after the standoff began, Uyesugi surrendered.
At the shooting scene, grieving relatives and co-workers gathered at a
strip
mall next to the Xerox building, where American Red Cross volunteers,
state
social workers and police counselors were waiting.
Co-workers hugged each other in the parking lot, their sobs filling the
air.
One woman emerged from the conference room accompanied by a Catholic
priest to
watch the body of a loved one being removed from the building. After
praying,
she lifted her head to the sky, arms raised.
Lt. Frank Fujii, a Honolulu Police Department counselor, said the
mission was
simply ``to get people through the day'' and ``hugs, lots of hugs.
``It was very trying for everybody,'' he said.
AP-NY-11-03-99
----------------------------------------------------------
The following appears courtesy of yesterday's Reuters news wire:
Hawaii loner accused of killing 7 at Xerox
By Mike Gordon
HONOLULU, Hawaii, Nov 2 (Reuters) - A Xerox technician, who allegedly
shot and
killed seven of his co-workers, surrendered to police on Tuesday after a
five-hour standoff, ending the bloodiest shooting rampage in Hawaii's
history.
The 40-year-old repairman, identified by officials as Byran Uyesugi was
about
to be fired from his job of 15 years when he burst into a Xerox
warehouse and
opened fire with a 9 mm pistol, killing seven of his work mates, all men
between the ages of 33 and 58, police said.
He then fled in a company van and was cornered by police at the Hawaii
Nature
Centre, a hiking area popular with school children near the scene of the
shooting, according to police.
The suspect remained there for five hours, surrounded by dozens of
heavily
armed police, until he was convinced by expert negotiators and his
brother to
get out of the van with his hands up and fall to his knees in surrender.
The shooting, the worst such incident in Hawaii's history, was the
latest in a
series of gun rampages in U.S. workplaces, schools and churches this
year,
despite overall declines in the U.S. homicide rate. The previous worst
shooting
incident in Hawaii left five people dead in 1991.
GRIEF COUNSELLING OFFERED
Hawaii Gov. Ben Cayetano said the state would offer whatever counselling
and
assistance it could for relatives and co-workers of the victims.
Vernon Wong, who has known Uyesugi for about 3 years because both were
members
of the Hawaii Goldfish and Carp Association, a fish enthusiasts club,
said he
was ``shocked'' to learn of his friend's alleged actions.
``Frankly, he's a nice quiet person, somewhat a loner but thats not a
bad
thing,'' Wong said. ``He's a quiet person, but I don't think anyone
considers
him offensive or touchy.''
He added that Uyesugi was a ``very active member'' of the club who was
planning
a lecture on building special fish tanks for the coming weeks.
``He's not an introvert,'' Wong said. ``He's soft spoken and he's very
polite.
``He's a reasonably intelligent person. I would think he would take
being laid
off well.''
Five people were killed in the conference room and another two were
found dead
in a nearby work area. No others were wounded in the assault.
SAFEST CITY IN NATION
Several people survived the attack in the Xerox warehouse, which is
located on
a busy highway near the city's downtown. Police evacuated a second Xerox
facility on the island in case the gunman went there.
Shane Laemmel, who works at media company next door to Xerox, said he
was was
in his office when he heard shots.
``I walked outside and the guys were running outside the warehouse,''
Laemmel
said. ``We didn't know what was going on. I saw a guy come out of the
warehouse, shake his head and fall on his knees. I had no idea what was
going
on.''
Honolulu Mayor Jeremy Harris said officials were shocked by the attack.
``We are the safest city in the nation. We have the lowest crime rate,''
he
said. ``Things like this just don't happen here in paradise. This is
something
that has shaken this community.''
Harris described the attack as ``a tremendous tragedy.''
Hawaii's last worst mass shooting took place in August 1991 when a man
shot his
wife's parents in a jealous rage and then set fire to the home where his
wife's
lover lived. Five people died.
23:26 11-02-99
----------------------------------------------------
The following appears courtesy of yesterday's Kyodo News Service news
wire:
Suspect in Honolulu shootout arrested
Kyodo News Service
WASHINGTON, Nov. 2 (Kyodo) - A Xerox Corp. worker suspected of carrying
out the
fatal shooting of seven co-workers in the company's office building in
Honolulu
was arrested Tuesday after an hours-long standoff with police, U.S.
television
networks said.
The suspect, Byran Uesugi, 40, was arrested by SWAT teams when he
emerged from
a company van he had parked in a residential area of Honolulu after
fleeing the
shooting scene, the networks said.
No injuries were reported during the arrest that took place in Makiki
Heights,
about 7 kilometers north of where the shooting occurred, the networks
said.
The suspect, an employee for 10 years in Xerox's technical services
division,
was on the verge of losing his job, they said.
Armed with a pistol, the gunman entered Xerox's parts warehouse at 8:10
a.m.
local time and opened fire, targeting members of his technical works
group.
Five people were shot in a conference room and two others in a nearby
workspace.
The shooting was the latest of several workplace killings across the
United
States this year.
In Alabama, Alan Miller, 34, was charged with killing two co-workers at
their
office Aug. 5. Just one week earlier, investor Mark Barton, 44, killed
nine
people and wounded 13 others at two brokerage firms in Atlanta.
11-02-99
------------------------------------------------
The following appears courtesy of today's Bloomberg L.P. Business News
news
wire:
Xerox Shooting in Hawaii Leaves Seven Dead, Suspect in Custody
Honolulu, Nov. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Seven people were killed at a Xerox
Corp. parts
warehouse in Honolulu yesterday when a gunman opened fire shortly after
8 a.m.
local time, police said, and a suspect is under arrest.
Byran Uyesugi, 40, was arrested after a nearly five-hour standoff with
police,
who'd surrounded his vehicle in a residential area. He's now being held
at the
main police station in Honolulu, and will be charged with first-degree
murder,
police said. The British Broadcasting Corp. said Uyesugi is a customer
service
engineer who joined Xerox in 1984.
``It's a shock for all of us,'' said Honolulu Mayor Jeremy Harris. ``We
have
such a safe community with almost no violent crime,'' he added. He told
the BBC
it appeared Uysesugi had snapped when he learnt he was about to lose his
job
after 15 years of service.
This is the latest in a spate of shootings across the U.S. since April,
with
several occurring in workplaces, and will reopen the debate into
regulation of
firearms. Mark Barton, 44, shot up two Atlanta stock day-trading offices
in
July, killing nine and injuring several people before committing
suicide.
Uyesugi's brother yesterday helped police negotiate for his surrender,
said
Michelle Yu, a spokeswoman for the Honolulu Police Department. Uyesugi
surrendered at 2:50 p.m. Honolulu time.
Rifle Team
``This is the worst tragedy in the history of Xerox,'' Glenn Sexton,
vice
president and general manager of Xerox Hawaii, said in a statement
yesterday.
He added that grief counselors are working with the families and
coworkers of
the victims.
The BBC said Uyesugi was a member of his high school rifle team and had
up to
17 weapons registered in his name.
Twenty casings from a 9mm handgun were recovered at the scene, and a gun
was
recovered from the van in which Uyesugi fled. The National Guard and the
Bureau
of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms were involved in the arrest, Yu said.
G. Richard Thoman, chief executive of Stamford, Connecticut- based
Xerox, the
world's biggest copier maker, is planning to arrive in Honolulu today.
The warehouse where the shootings took place is on North Nimitz Highway,
a few
miles from downtown Honolulu, Yu said.
Nov/03/1999
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