Hawaiʻi Bribery Scandal: Defendants Plead Not Guilty
Prosecutors say the defendants conspired to steer $170.4 million in pandemic funding to a testing contract and conceal campaign donations.
- On Thursday, Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke, former state Rep. Ryan Yamane, airports administrator Ford Fuchigami, and state planning official Leo Asuncion Jr. pleaded not guilty to bribery and conspiracy charges in Oahu Circuit Court.
- Investigations allege the group orchestrated a conspiracy between 2020 and 2022 to secure state funding for COVID-19 testing contracts, with businessman Tobi Solidum, who fled to the Philippines in 2024, at the center.
- Luke allegedly agreed to accept $70,000 in campaign contributions to support Solidum's testing contracts funded through House Bill 2392 providing about $170.4 million. Fuchigami allegedly accepted a $7,000 check; Asuncion allegedly falsified campaign finance reports.
- Gov. Josh Green urged Luke to resign to "focus on this matter with her family," while Judge Ronald Johnson scheduled trial for September 28 despite defense attorneys questioning the accelerated timeline.
- Defense attorney Eric Seitz called conspiracy charges "virtually impossible to prove" and questioned prosecution success, while legal observers cite statute-of-limitations challenges and Solidum's absence as potential barriers to conviction.
18 Articles
18 Articles
Hawaii Tribune-Herald
West Hawaii TodayLt. Gov. Luke, three alleged co-conspirators plead not guilty
Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke and three others who are accused of orchestrating a bribery conspiracy to get state money to pay for COVID-19 testing contracts during the pandemic pleaded not guilty this morning. The post Lt. Gov. Luke, three alleged co-conspirators plead not guilty appeared first on Hawaii Tribune-Herald.
Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke, 3 alleged co-conspirators plead not guilty | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke and three others who are accused of orchestrating a bribery conspiracy to get state money to pay for COVID-19 testing contracts during the pandemic pleaded not guilty this morning.
COVID-19 spending at center of alleged conspiracy
At the heart of a criminal indictment returned Friday against Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke and four others is an alleged bribery conspiracy tied to the state’s COVID-19 response, when hundreds of millions of dollars were approved to combat an unprecedented public health crisis.
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