Police arrest Mountain View man after firearms call triggers search
A Mountain View firearms call ended with Michael Gardner’s arrest after a two-hour search that brought in a perimeter, road closure and the HPD Special Response Team.
A report of multiple firearms at a Mountain View home on Hinuhinu Street triggered a police search Thursday that ended with the arrest of 38-year-old Michael Gardner of Mountain View and a brief closure of nearby roads.
Hawaii Island police said Puna patrol officers were dispatched at about 3:30 p.m. to the 18-4100 block of Hinuhinu Street after the initial call reported a man in possession of multiple firearms. When officers arrived, Gardner fled in a vehicle, prompting a broader response that included a perimeter around the area and the deployment of the Hawaii Police Department’s Special Response Team.
Officers later found the vehicle on a nearby dead-end road, then located Gardner at about 6:48 p.m. He was arrested without incident and taken to the East Hawaii Detention Center in Hilo, where he remained in custody pending investigation. Police also recovered his vehicle while preparing to execute a search warrant.
No injuries were reported, and police did not say anyone in the neighborhood was directly harmed during the incident. Even so, the response rippled beyond the original residence: Haumalu Street at Haupia Street was closed for a little more than an hour as officers worked the scene and searched for Gardner.
Police identified the offense as place to keep pistol or revolver, under Hawaii Revised Statutes §134-25. That firearms offense is part of the state’s chapter on weapons storage and possession, and the case now sits with detectives in the Area I Criminal Investigation Section.
The Hawaii Police Department asked anyone with information to contact Detective Amy Omaya at (808) 961-2381 or Amy.Omaya@hawaiipolice.gov. The department said its Area I Criminal Investigation Division covers East Hawaii and works alongside patrol units, a structure that was visible in this case as Puna officers, investigators and the Special Response Team converged on the Mountain View neighborhood.
For residents, the incident showed how quickly a firearms call in Puna can spread from one home to surrounding roads, drawing a coordinated response across a wide area before ending in a single arrest.
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