KAUAI OFFICERS PLEAD NO CONTEST

Three Kaua'i police officers pleaded no contest yesterday to charges
of theft and falsifying government records after they traveled to a
training session at county expense but skipped the training, the state
Attorney General's Office said.

Sgt. Wesley F. Perreira, Sgt. Lawrence E.T. Stem and Officer Channing
T. Tada each pleaded no contest to second-degree theft, a felony, and
tampering with a government record. They face up to five years in
prison on the theft charges.

The three officers went to Maui in September 2005 for two days of
Indoor Marijuana Investigation Training at Pu'ununu Armory near Kihei.

The three officers never attended the training, which was hosted by
the Maui Police Department and partially funded by federal grant
money. The officers failed to notify their chain of command that they
would skip the training and did not provide a reason for their
absence, the Attorney General's Office said.

Upon returning to Kaua'i, each submitted time sheets that included the
two days of training. Stem and Tada also filled out Kaua'i Police
Department training forms and rated the training.

Each officer received amounts ranging from $403 to $478 in salary for
the time they were supposed to be in training. They also claimed or
tried to claim $383 in federal money for airfare and per diem. The
department learned several weeks later that the officers did not
attend the session.

Sentencing is scheduled for April 30 before 3rd Circuit Judge Kathleen
Watanabe.