‘Psychopath’ captured after escape from custody
Mental hospital patient managed to fly from Hawaii to California
A manipulative “psychopathic predator” who Hawaiian prosecutors said has “all the criteria of a classic serial killer” was arrested Wednesday, four days after escaping from a mental hospital on Oahu, chartering a plane to a neighboring island and taking a commercial flight to California.
The “violent psychopath” in question is Randall Toshio Saito, who has lived at the Hawaii State Hospital for nearly four decades, according to police. He was arrested by deputies in San Joaquin County, Calif., after “an alert taxi cab driver” called pol ice, the Sheriff’s Office said.
In 1979, Saito shot Sandra Yamashiro in the face with a pellet gun, then stabbed her to death, according to Time magazine. He had never met the woman before and chose her at random at the Ala Moana Center, Hawaii’s largest mall. Police found her bloody body in her car. Two years later, Saito was found not guilty of murder by reason of insanity and was committed to the mental facility.
During the psychological evaluation after the killing, authorities got a troubling and detailed understanding of Saito’s violent mind.
“He is a psychopathic predator whose mental condition continues to represent a serious danger to the community,” deputy prosecuting attorney Jeffrey Albert said during one of several hearings to determine whether Saito should be freed, according to CBS affiliate KPIX. Saito “fills all the criteria of a classic serial killer.”
No alarms were tripped when Saito walked out of the mental hospital, alone and empty-handed, about 9 a.m. Sunday, police said.
He took a cab to the Oahu airport and paid for the chartered flight to Maui.
He spent 90 minutes on Maui before hopping a Hawaiian Airlines flight to San Jose, according to The Associated Press.
He’d booked the tickets on Travelocity, using the same alias that got him through airport security, KHNL reported. He landed in Northern California about 7:30 p.m. local time Sunday.
He was captured about 10:30 a.m. Wednesday at a highway in Stockton, Calif., Honolulu CrimeStoppers Sgt. Chris Kim told AP.
In Hawaii, investigators were trying to see how Saito was able to mastermind an escape.