Autopsy Points to Murder in Death of Woman Near Lava Viewing

Kilauea Volcano, file photo by Wendy Osher.

By Wendy Osher

A murder investigation has been launched following results of an autopsy conducted on the body of a woman found in waters off Kalapana on Tuesday, police said.

Hawaiʻi Island police say an autopsy on Wednesday determined that the female victim died of strangulation, and that the “manner of death was homicide.”

In a previous press release, police said the woman’s body was found when it was “caught in a fishing line from a nearby fishing boat” in the ocean off of a lava viewing area in the Puna District.

Police say the identity of the woman has not yet been determined.

She is described by police as a Caucasian woman, possibly in her late 20s or early 30s, with short brown hair, and a tattoo of the word “Veritas” (Latin for truth) on her lower back.

Anyone with information is asked to call Hawaiʻi Island police.

***Supporting information courtesy Lieutenant Gregory Esteban, Hawaiʻi Police Department, CID.