‘Enough of the terror’: Prosecutors urge jury to convict accused Hawaii crime boss in racketeering trial closing

Federal prosecutors said Michael Miske "left a path of battered bodies, shattered lives, traumatized victims and death scattered in his wake,” as part of a decades-long criminal enterprise.

by Keya Rivera, Court House News, July 11, 2024

HONOLULU (CN) — Federal attorneys delivered closing arguments Thursday against accused Honolulu crime boss Michael Miske Jr., highlighting the credibility of witnesses and Miske's volatile reputation in their final appeal to the jury.

Prosecutors accuse Miske of leading a criminal enterprise involving drug smuggling, robbery, fraud and assault for nearly two decades. He also notably faces charges of conspiracy linked to the disappearance and possible murder of a man he blamed for the death of his son. Miske, who was arrested in 2020, has also been implicated in illegal fireworks sales and chemical attacks on rival nightclubs.

“It’s a place where greed, intimidation, retribution and violence rule the day, and at the epicenter of that criminal underworld was the defendant, Michael J. Miske, who embodied each of those traits and employed them all in building and maintaining a criminal enterprise that preyed upon this island for the better part of two decades,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark A. Inciong said to the 16-person jury.

The jury will assess thousands of exhibits and hundreds of witness testimonies from the trial that began in January and weigh the credibility of statements from Miske's associates, family members, accused co-conspirators, employees and field experts who took the stand.

Prosecutors say that as the former owner of several businesses — including the well-known Kama'aina Termite and Pest Control, nightclubs and a car dealership — Miske purportedly merged these operations with his criminal connections. The prosecution says this combination allowed him to gain wealth and cultivate a reputation for violent retaliation.

“So what’s the purpose of this criminal enterprise? There were multiple purposes,” said Inciong. “The first, to make money to enrich themselves. Secondly, to preserve and protect those financial profits and the power of the enterprise through intimidation, violence, and physical and economical harm.” 

Inciong reminded the court that in conspiracy cases, the criminal act is the agreement itself to attempt a crime, stressing that the actual execution of the planned crime is not relevant to determining guilt or innocence.

Prosecutors stressed the 2016 disappearance of 21-year-old Johnathan Fraser. They say Miske orchestrated Fraser's kidnapping and assumed murder, in retaliation for a car crash that resulted in the death of Miske's son. Both murder-related charges carry mandatory minimum life sentences.

Inciong acknowledged the lack of physical evidence in Fraser's disappearance but emphasized evidence like the state of Fraser's apartment when he went missing and his subsequent lack of contact with friends and family. The prosecutor also cited testimony from Wayne Miller, Miske's former associate, who testified Miske expressed intent to kill Fraser.

According to prosecutors, Miske told Miller while at the hospital with his son after the accident, “We’ll make preparations after the funeral, the kid's got to go.” 

Throughout the trial, Miske's defense has maintained his innocence and suggested Fraser may still be alive.

Inciong presented evidence of Miske's reported intimidation tactics, including photos of injured individuals said to be victims of Miske's organization. These included accountant Robert Lee, who testified about being kidnapped and beaten by Miske associates in 2017, and rival nightclub promoter Michael Galmiche, who accused Miske and others of assault.

The prosecution said Miske used violence to maintain his reputation and further his criminal enterprise. They claim he made around $2 million from illegal fireworks sales and failed to report millions in illicit income to the IRS. 

Prosecutors presented multiple texts, phone calls and crime scene photographs to underscore Miske's violent reputation. 

In one email, Miske warned a business rival, “You’re from the mainland, you don’t know what it's like here. I can make you just disappear.”

Inciong urged the jury to “use their common sense” in the upcoming conclusion to the trial, stressing that the government's burden is to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, not beyond all possible doubt.

“The defendant left a path of battered bodies, shattered lives, traumatized victims and death scattered in his wake,” he said.

“Enough already of the terror,” Inciong added. “Enough of Mike Miske’s criminal activities. Enough of the Miske enterprise … End this once and for all. Find Mike Miske guilty.”

Miske and his defense will present their closing arguments Friday and the jury is expected to begin deliberations Monday.