Prosecuting Attorney Kelden Waltjen announced that an Ocean View man, 44 year-old Dorson Buddy Behrendt was arrested and charged in relation to a robbery and firearm shooting incident that occurred on October 15, 2023 in the Hawaiian Ocean View subdivision.
At 8:50 p.m. on Sunday, October 15, Ka‘ū patrol officers were dispatched to the area of Aloha Boulevard and Paradise Parkway in the Hawai‘i Ocean View Estates subdivision for a report of a male in need of medical assistance after possibly being assaulted. Arriving on scene, officers found the victim, believed to be a 53-year-old Ocean View man, with severe facial injuries lying on the ground near a gold Toyota van. Due to the severity of his injuries, police were unable to ask the victim how he had been injured.
The victim was transported to the Kona Community Hospital with life-threatening injuries where it was determined that he had sustained a gunshot wound to his facial area. He was subsequently transferred to the Queens Medical Center on Oahu where he remains hospitalized in stable condition.
During the course of the investigation, police identified Dorson Buddy Behrendt of Ocean View as the suspect and possible responsible person who shot the victim.
Detectives with Hawai‘i Police Department’s Area II Criminal Investigation Section (CIS) arrested and charged Buddy Behrendt with numerous offenses, including attempted murder.
Behrendt, who was in custody in lieu of $350,000.00 bail, made his initial appearance on Thursday morning in Kona District Court. Behrendt was granted release on his own recognizance by District Court Judge Kimberly Taniyama and ordered to appear for a preliminary hearing on November 29, 2023. Behrendt was originally arrested on a Third Circuit warrant of arrest establishing probable cause for the offenses of Attempted Murder in the Second Degree, Attempted Robbery in the First Degree, and Carrying or Use of a Firearm in the Commission of a Separate Felony.
As the Complaint alleges, Behrendt was charged with Attempted Murder in the Second Degree (shooting another person with a firearm), Attempted Robbery in the First Degree, and two counts of Carrying or Use of a Firearm in the Commission of a Separate Felony. Attempted Murder in the Second Degree carries a penalty of life imprisonment with the possibility of parole. Attempted Robbery in the First Degree and Carrying or Use of a Firearm in the Commission of a Separate Felony are both class A felony offenses which carry a penalty of a twenty-year prison term.
The charges are merely allegations and the Defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The case was initiated by Ka‘u Patrol. The felony investigation was led by Detective Donovan Kohara, Area II Criminal Investigation Section, Hawai‘i Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Chase Murray.
Police ask anyone who may have information regarding this incident to contact Detective Donovan Kohara of the Area II Criminal Investigation Section at (808) 960-3118, via email at mailto:Donovan.kohara@hawaiicounty.gov, or the police department’s non-emergency line at (808) 935-3311.