Michael J. Miske Jr., former owner of Kamaaina Termite and Pest Control, and other local businesses, faces several murder, kidnapping, and conspiracy charges for his alleged role in the July 30, 2016 disappearance of Jonathan Fraser, who was a close friend of Miske’s late son, Caleb.

A photo showing a white Sienna van was recently introduced into evidence in Miske’s ongoing criminal trial. It was retrieved by a Honolulu police detective from the security camera system of a residence on the 400 block of Kawaihae Street in Hawaii Kai shortly after Fraser’s disappearance, and shows a white Toyota Sienna van not far from the condominium where Johnny Fraser was last seen alive.

The photo bears a time stamp showing it was recorded on July 30, 2016 at 12:56 p.m. That was the day Fraser disappeared without a trace. He has not been seen since.

Prosecutors have painstakingly questioned a series of witnesses tracing a white or light colored Sienna van like this one. Evidence in the trial shows a similar Sienna was purchased from an ad on Craigslist not long before Fraser disappeared. The buyer used a false name on the transfer of ownership. Prosecutors had already established that another vehicle used in a crime by a Miske associate had been similarly purchased using a false name.

Lance Bermudez, who pleaded guilty of being part of Miske’s racketeering enterprise and other crimes in September 2022, said admitted in his written plea agreement that on July 30, 2016, he had been contacted by Jason Yokoyama, manager of Miske’s M Nightclub, who asked for Bermudez’ help in getting rid of a Sienna van. Yokoyama drove Bermudez to Hawaii Kai and showed him where the van was parked on the street. Later that night, Bermudez said he and Dae Han Moon returned to Hawaii Kai, where he stole the van, then drove it out towards Ewa, parked under a freeway overpass, and set it on fire. He then returned to Honolulu in a car he had been driving. He said he was paid $3,500 to get rid of the van.

Bermudez has not yet appeared as a witness in Miske’s trial, and has been held in an undisclosed mainland location. However, both a police officer and firefighter who responded to the scene of a vehicle fire in Ewa early in the morning on July 31 have testified. They both identified the burned vehicle as a Sienna van, light color. The fire was apparently in or near the location where Bermudez said he had left the van. The intense fire made it impossible to locate the VIN number needed positively identify the van.

Location data from a cell phone used by Bermudez has also been admitted into evidence, showing he had been in the Hawaii Kai area, then could be tracked driving out to the west side.

Bermudez is going to be an important witness. He was not shy in pointing out during his change of plea hearing that he disagreed with one crime that had been attributed to him. This involved the armed robbery of the BVNK store in Kalihi. The plea agreement stated Bermudez had been the driver, and after the heist had taken the car and set it on fire. But while Bermudez admitted he had been the getaway driver for that robbery, he insisted he did not burn that car. The sentence was removed from the plea agreement during his change of plea hearing.

So there are still pieces of this puzzle missing, but it is clear prosecutors believe the Sienna van captured on this security video was involved in some way in Fraser’s kidnapping.