Back on Friday, October 16, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported Honolulu police had raided a game room on Queen Street in Kakaako the evening before. The newspaper reported two people had been arrested in the raid. They were not named.

“Police seized multiple gambling machines, cash and a firearm from the game rooms,” the newspaper reported.

The story caught my attention because the location at 975 Queen Street was just a short distance from the former offices of Kamaaina Termite and Pest Control, the company federal prosecutors allege was at the center of a criminal gang controlled by the company’s owner, Michael J. Miske.

I decided to check on what happened to the two men arrested in the raid and mentioned in the news story.

First, I looked up the arrest log for the night of the arrests. You may be surprised to learn that adult arrest logs are posted online daily and open to the public. By checking the time and location of the arrests, I found the two men referred to in the news accounts.

Anderson Houghtailing and Ethan Shawn Tanudra were both charged with 2nd Degree Promotion of Gambling, and possession of gambling machines.

Here’s an excerpt from Houghtailing’s HPD arrest log entry.

A quick check of Houghtailing’s criminal record shows he was charged in 1999 with “Unauthorized control of propelled vehicle.” In plain language, I think that means he was stopped while driving a stolen car. Two other people arrested with him were charged with promotion of dangerous drugs, and one was found guilty. Houghtailing entered a “no contest” plea and was sentenced to five years probation.

But he was charged again the following year with promotion of dangerous drugs and “Prohibited acts related to drug paraphernalia.” Houghtailing was convicted on both charges in 2004 following a jury trial. He was sentenced to five years in prison. In addition, his earlier probation was revoked as a result of the conviction and he was resentenced to serve an additional five year prison term.

After his recent arrest in the game room raid, Houghtailing admitted guilt and was quickly processed through the system. Court records show he appeared before District Court Judge Sherri-Ann Iha via video conference the day after the raid. He was represented by a public defender.

Houghtailing quickly waived his right to a jury trial, admitted to the factual basis of the charges, and entered “no contest” pleas to both charges. He was sentenced to two days in jail on each charge, with the sentences to run concurrently, meaning a single two-day sentence would be served. The $30 fee for court costs (on each count) was waived by the court with the notation, “unable to pay.”

Houghtailing also agreed to forfeit the gambling machines seized in the raid.

Tanudra, who does not appear to have any criminal record, was not processed the same way. Instead, he was charged with the same two gambling-related offenses in a written complaint by prosecutors dated Friday, October 23, which was filed in First Circuit Court until just before 1 p.m. the following Monday, October 26, 2020.

No court date has been set.

Two other people were arrested at the scene for criminal contempt of court, according to the arrest log, but were apparently released without charges, court records show.

And after digging through those details, I found no obvious links to what prosecutors have termed the “Miske Enterprise”. That’s the way it is when reporting a complex story. Sometimes you just spin your wheels. This was one of those times.