Hilo Man Arrested for Stealing Postal Worker's Keys in South Kohala

Stolen postal master keys were hanging from a lanyard around Tristan De Witt Kiyan's neck when Hāmākua patrol officers found him at Waikaumalo Park in Ninole at 5:20 p.m. on Saturday, March 21 — less than 26 hours after he allegedly confronted a U.S. Postal Service worker delivering mail along Māmalahoa Highway in Waimea and walked away with her license and a set of keys estimated to be worth $15,100.

Kiyan, 37, listed on a police log as from Hilo but described in court documents as having no permanent address, now faces charges of second-degree theft and unauthorized possession of confidential personal information, both Class C felonies carrying a potential five-year prison term each.

The incident began around 3:30 p.m. on Friday, March 20, near the 64-0500 block of Māmalahoa Highway. Police say a white Toyota sedan began tailgating the mail carrier's truck and honking; the worker pulled over, and the driver pulled directly in front of her and reversed close to her vehicle before approaching on foot. He demanded her driver's license, keys, and cell phone, telling her she had "violated" him. She handed over her license and keys but refused to give up the phone. He told her she had now "violated" him three times, then returned to his vehicle and drove away.

That phone proved critical. The postal worker used it to photograph the man and his vehicle, including the license plate, as he left. The plate led investigators to a white 1995 Toyota Tercel and, through an all-points-bulletin, to Kiyan himself the following afternoon.

What he took carries consequences well beyond one carrier's route. The stolen keys included master keys for all P.O. boxes and blue mail drop boxes, as well as a subdivision master key covering the Waimea, Kawaihae and Waikoloa areas.

A search warrant executed on Kiyan's vehicle at the time of his arrest recovered 23.14 grams of marijuana, a petty misdemeanor offense that carries a possible 30-day jail sentence under state law.

At his initial appearance Monday in Waimea, District Court Judge Kimberly Tsuchiya granted a request from Deputy Public Defender Kyla Livingston for a mental health evaluation and freed Kiyan on supervised release, a form of cashless bail, without objection from Deputy Prosecutor Charles Murray. Court proceedings are suspended until the examination is complete. Kiyan is ordered to return to court April 28 for a hearing on the results.

Court records show Kiyan pleaded no contest in 2019 to first-degree terroristic threatening, a Class C felony, and was sentenced to six months in jail and four years of probation. Hilo Circuit Judge Peter Kubota accepted Kiyan's request to defer acceptance of that plea, which nullified the felony conviction after Kiyan successfully completed probation.

Anyone with information about the incident can contact Detective Jeremiah Hull at 808-326-4646 ext. 224 or Jeremiah.Hull@hawaiipolice.gov.