Waiawa Correctional Facility escapee remains at large

An inmate who escaped from the minimum-security Waiawa Correctional Facility Tuesday night remains at large.

The state Department of Public Safety reported that front-gate security staff spotted an individual outside the facility’s perimeter fence around 10:25 p.m. and that the man ran when told to stop. An emergency headcount was conducted, with staff reporting that inmate Pono Kaleikini, 26, was missing, according to a DPS news release.

Corrections officers searched the grounds of the Waiawa facility and the road outside, and also notified state sheriffs and the Honolulu Police Department. Officials are investigating how Kaleikini managed to escape.

He is a minimum-custody inmate serving time for third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug, the release said. His next parole hearing is scheduled for December.

Kaleikini is 5 feet, 6 inches tall and weighs 130 pounds. He has brown eyes and brown hair. To report sightings, call 911 or sheriffs at 808-586-1352.

Waiawa Correctional Facility is a work camp-style facility with dorms for men who have been sentenced, DPS said. Inmates participate in education or substance abuse treatment programs as they prepare to transition into the furlough program.