A wrongful death lawsuit seeking monetary damages has been filed against the late racketeering boss Michael J. Miske, Jr., his estate, and several of his associates, alleging they “knowingly, deliberately, intentionally, and maliciously” caused the death of 21-year old Jonathan Fraser in 2016.

Fraser was the best friend of Miske’s son, Caleb, when the two young men were involved in a high-speed auto accident in Kaneohe. Both were taken to Queen’s Medical Center in critical condition. Fraser survived, but Caleb Miske died several months later of complications from his injuries.

A federal jury found Miske guilty of directing a murder-for-hire revenge plot that resulted in Fraser’s sudden disappearance on July 30, 2016. Trial testimony established that Mike Miske mistakenly believed Fraser had been driving at the time of the accident and held him responsible for Caleb’s death, although that belief was unsupported by any witnesses at the accident scene or any available accident reports.

Despite the jury verdict, Miske’s indictment and convictions had to be vacated after his death of a fentanyl overdose in December while in custody at the Federal Detention Center awaiting sentencing.

The wrongful death claim was filed several weeks ago on behalf of Fraser’s biological father, William A. Fraser III, and indicates he is also seeking to be appointed as personal representative for Johnny Fraser’s estate. There is no mention of Johnny Fraser’s mother, who campaigned publicly for years to keep his disappearance in the public eye, and pressed relentlessly for the investigation to continue until charges were filed.

The wrongful death claim names two defendants alleged to be responsible for the murder–Jacob “Jake” Smith and Lance Bermudez. Miske’s longtime employee and business partner, Jason Yokoyama, and Caleb Miske’s widow, Delia Fabro Miske, were allegedly active parts of the conspiracy as well and are also named as defendants. All four have pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges stemming from their roles in the racketeering enterprise Miske controlled until his arrest in July 2020.

The lawsuit repeats allegations made during Miske’s trial that Yokoyama purchased a white Sienna van and other items to be used in Fraser’s kidnapping, while Fabro-Miske arranged for Fraser to be alone at home without a working cell phone on the day he disappeared.

It is the second lawsuit filed by the Seitz law firm on behalf of a Miske victim seeking monetary damages. An earlier lawsuit was filed on behalf of Seung-Ji Robert Lee, an accountant who was kidnapped and assaulted on Miske’s orders. That case is pending in Honolulu’s First Circuit Court.

Although prosecutors did not present evidence, or even a theory, of exactly how and by whom Fraser was kidnapped and murdered, the latest complaint pulls together bits and pieces of evidence from trial testimony and documents disclosed in discovery and eventually made public, and draws a direct conclusion.

“Smith and Bermudez were tasked with abducting and murdering Jonathan,” according to the lawsuit. “Miske offered Smith $50,000 to torture and murder Jonathan and to provide him with video of the killing.”

The case appears to rest heavily on statements by James Borling-Salas, a young associate of Smith’s, who told investigators in December 2019 that he had assisted in Fraser’s kidnapping, and later saw him being assaulted by Bermudez and Smith in a 12-bedroom Kalihi home where they were renting the second floor. He also said Smith showed him a video of the torture on his phone.

Borling Salas had a record of arrests for petty crimes as a teen, and while in custody became associated with the La Familia prison gang, where he met Jake Smith, also a La Familia member. He lived with Smith during one period, and joined Smith and others in several assaults prosecutors attributed to the Miske Enterprise as well as the Fraser kidnapping.

However, three years later, Borling-Salas was severely beaten by three inmates in December 2019 while detained at the Oahu Community Correctional Center on a probation violation. He died in January 2019. The beating was allegedly in retaliation for being a “snitch” and for attempting to end affiliation with La Familia. The three inmates who took part in the beating were La Familia members.

The Seitz law firm conducted its own investigation in support of a lawsuit filed on behalf of Janet Salas, James Borling-Salas’ mother, alleging the Department of Public Safety action and inaction contributed to his death.

To pursue its wrongful death claim, Fraser’s attorneys will essentially have to put on their own case pinning the kidnapping and murder on the named defendants, something prosecutors sidestepped during their successful prosecution of Miske.

The difference, which will be critical if the case moves forward, is that the plaintiff’s burden of proof in a civil lawsuit is to prove their allegations “a preponderance of the evidence,” showing that their claims are more than 50% likely to be true. This is a far lower standard than the “beyond a reasonable doubt” prosecutors had to show in order to obtain Miske’s conviction in his criminal trial.

However, the federal government is currently pursuing a civil lawsuit seeking court approval to seize an estimated $25 million in assets of Miske and the group of companies he owned and controlled. Seitz filed a motion to intervene in the forfeiture case on behalf of the accountant, Seung-Ji Robert Lee, seeking “to vindicate his interests in and rights to restitution and civil damages against Michael J. Miske.”

That effort was unsuccessful, and the motion to intervene in the forfeiture case was withdrawn.

Wrongful Death lawsuit filed against Michael Miske's estate by Ian Lind on Scribd