Hawaii man arrested after neutralizing armed attacker who killed three women could face murder charges

WAIANAE, HI - Rishard Carnate, 42, was arrested and later released Saturday after he shot and killed 59-year-old, Hiram Silva. Carnate's actions put an end to Silva's rampage, during which he murdered three women in his neighborhood. The women have since been identified as Courtney Raymond-Arakaki, 34, Jessyca Amasiu, 29, and Cherell Keamo, 36.

According to ABC News, Honolulu Police told reporters that three women were killed and two more injured when a dispute between homeowners ended with gunfire. Carnate, identified by CivilBeat, along with the victims, and Silva. Carnate was initially charged with second-degree murder, but was later released pending investigation.

Honolulu Police Chief Joe Logan told the outlet, "In Hawaii, we are a non ‘stand your ground’ state." He added, “Even if you have a license to carry, if you're an individual that discharges a firearm that is involved in injuring another person ... you're going to be arrested.

ABC News reported that the assailant, later identified by other outlets as Silva, rammed a frontloader into several cars at a family gathering under a carport in his neighborhood. he then opened fire killing Raymond-Arakaki, Amasiu, and Keamo and wounding two others.

Carnate, who lives at the home where the gathering was held, emerged from the home and opened fire with a handgun.

Chair of the Waianae Coast Neighborhood Board Philip Ganaban told reporters that he knows the families involved in the dispute, but he struggled Tuesday to understand the confrontation. He said that Silva was a family man and added, "We're still wondering what would trigger him so bad. It was a bad decision he made.”



KITV Island News reported that despite the disagreement between neighbors, police were not called prior to the explosion of gunfire at the residence. Chief Logan told the outlet, "In 2024 we didn't get any calls for responding to that area, whether a loud party or racing or anything. The prior years there may have been calls for loud parties or other things." 

Reportedly, recent shootings in the area have been attributed to residents taking the law into their own hands. Ganaban explained, "Our community is safe. Our people are safe and the incidents that happened were not random. They were among individual groups or among families that had long-standing issues with each other." 

In response, Chief Logan urged the public, "Call 911, let the police handle the situation. We're equipped with the right resources and information to come to the families talk about it. Then help maybe provide outside resourcing to mediation, and other aspects that can help families and neighbors get through disputes. So there's other ways to do this besides violence."