UPDATED MEDIA RELEASE (3 p.m. on 5/6/2016)

An autopsy is scheduled for today (May 6) on the bodies of three persons found early this morning in Puna.

At approximately 1:30 a.m. Friday (May 6), officers responded to a call about a disturbance at a home on Moku Street in the Leilani Estates subdivision. Upon arrival, they observed a man exiting the house and driving from the scene in a car with no lights on.

Officers made a traffic stop on the car and observed a firearm on the front seat. They arrested the driver and then observed what appeared to be blood dripping from the trunk of the car. The trunk was opened, exposing a deceased woman inside.

Checks at the home of the reported disturbance revealed the bodies of a male minor and a female minor.

The victims have not been positively identified.

The driver of the car, 49-year-old John Ali Hoffman of Leilani Estates, was arrested on suspicion of three counts of second-degree murder, one count of first-degree murder and a firearms offense. He is being held in the Hilo police cellblock while detectives from the Area I Criminal Investigations Division continue the investigation.

Police ask anyone with information about this case to call the Police Department’s non-emergency line at 935-3311 or contact Detective Scott Amaral at 961-2276 or scott.amaral@hawaiicounty.gov.

Tipsters who prefer to remain anonymous may call the islandwide Crime Stoppers number at 961-8300 and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000. Crime Stoppers is a volunteer program run by ordinary citizens who want to keep their community safe. Crime Stoppers doesn’t record calls or subscribe to caller ID. Crime Stoppers information is kept confidential.

MEDIA RELEASE

John Ali Hoffman

Hawaiʻi Island police have arrested a Puna man on suspicion of multiple murders.

At approximately 1:30 a.m. Friday (May 6) officers responded to a disturbance call in the Leilani Estates subdivision in Puna. Upon arrival, they observed a vehicle leaving the area. Officers stopped the vehicle and discovered the body of a female adult inside.

The driver of the vehicle was identified as 49-year-old John Ali Hoffman of Leilani Estates.

Checks at the home of the reported disturbance reveal two additional dead bodies in the house.

Hoffman was arrested on suspicion of three counts of second-degree murder, one count of first-degree murder and a firearms offense. He is being held in the Hilo police cellblock pending further investigation.