HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A suspect fatally shot his estranged wife at a parking lot near Pearlridge Center on Friday morning as panicked customers and employees ducked for cover and fled.
Jason Cachuela, 44, was subsequently found dead. It’s believed he killed himself.
Adding to the tragedy just days from Christmas, relatives said the victim’s young daughter witnessed the shooting. Her heartbroken family said the case underscores the real dangers of family violence.
They identified the victim as Theresa Cachuela, 33, a social media influencer and mother of three.
Her mother, Lucita Aninihoa, said she spoke to her daughter just moments before the shooting. They’d planned to meet up for some last-minute Christmas shopping at the mall.
“I just talked to her. She’s just like, ‘Mom, I’m on my way. Got traffic,’” Aninihoa said.
HPD said the case was being classified as a first-degree murder because the suspect had been served a temporary restraining order filed by the victim and had been ordered to hand over his weapons.
The shooting happened about 10:15 a.m. — as the area was just beginning to fill up with mallgoers looking to finish their Christmas shopping.
Witness Danny Earles was in the area and said he heard the gun going off.
“All of a sudden I started hearing, pop, pop, pop … six shots. And then a second or two later, pop, pop pop. And I said that’s a gun. That’s not fire alarm or fireworks,” Earles said.
“So I jumped behind a cement column. And then … he must have put another clip in. I hear pop, pop, pop pop and I shut down. That’s like 12 bullets and then I crouched down and ran out of the parking lot.”
Heartbroken relatives identify victim in fatal shooting as social media influencer, mom of 3
Pali Momi Medical Center was on lockdown for more than an hour as authorities responded.
HPD Lt. Deena Thoemmes said the victim was pronounced dead at the scene, and officials said she’d sustained a gunshot wound to the head. Following a manhunt, the suspect was found dead about 1:40 p.m. behind a home in Waipahu, where dozens of police officers had converged to search for him.
Aninihoa said the victim has recently filed a temporary restraining order against the suspect due to harassment and stalking. “She wanted to leave him but he wasn’t accepting it,” Aninihoa said. “He tried to control her with, with everything, you know — where she would go what she would do.”
Aninihoa said the tragedy could have been prevented had her daughter’s requests for police help been taken seriously. “She’s been trying to tell the cops about all the issues that were going on,” she said.
“The court wasn’t there for her and look now she’s not here.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Copyright 2023 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.