Hawaii community feared triple-murder suspect would ‘show up at their house with a machete’

U.S. newsHawaii community feared triple-murder suspect would ‘show up at their house with a machete’A neighbor’s security camera captured a man who appeared to be suspect Jacob Baker. The property owner immediately called 911, and an arrest was made shortly after. Listen to this article with a free account00:0000:00Add NBC News to GoogleHawaii police arrest suspect linked to three deaths02:05Get more newsLiveonShareAdd NBC News to GoogleMay 29, 2026, 8:56 PM EDTBy Tim StellohThe video shows a shirtless, shoeless man meandering down a dirt driveway with a dog at his side. As vehicles drive by on a nearby road, he can be seen dropping to the ground.Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.The video, captured Thursday afternoon on a security camera on Hawaii’s Big Island, prompted the property owner to call 911 immediately. To Mark Wyatt, who with his partner owns the 4-acre parcel in the rural Puna District, the man’s identity seemed clear. Although his face wasn’t visible, it looked like Jacob Baker, a onetime neighbor who was now a suspect in a series of killings. He was the subject of an intense manhunt and a wave of fear across Wyatt’s normally quiet, tight-knit stretch of Hawaii’s east coast. Within an hour of making his 911 call, Wyatt told NBC News, he got a call from a police officer. Baker had been apprehended, he recalled the officer saying.“It was a big relief,” said Wyatt, 61. “Everybody was afraid he could show up at their house with a machete.”A spokeswoman for the Hawaii Police Department declined to comment on the video’s role in Baker’s apprehension. But during a Thursday news conference announcing the arrest, Hawaii Police Chief Reed Mahuna thanked a tipster who “saw something, said something and helped bring this manhunt to a safe conclusion.”That tip, Mahuna said, alerted authorities that the possible suspect had been hiding in a grassy area and ducking as traffic passed by. The observation...