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Home Invader's Plea Denied by Parole Board

(KHNL) - We know the so-called Manoa home invader faces a maximum sentence of 20 years. The question is, how much of that does he need to serve before he's eligible for early release?

The parole board answered that question Wednesday.

Four months into his incarceration, the so-called Manoa home invader is already struggling.

"It hurts to sit in my cell every day, waiting for the day my innocence will be proven," Shaun Rodrigues, convicted robber, said during a hearing May 2nd.

For Rodrigues it'll be a long road ahead, as the Hawaii Parole Board sets his minimum sentence at 12 years. That means the former National Guardsman won't be eligible for parole until January 2, 2018.

"I went through the whole gamut of emotions," William Harrison, defense attorney, said. "The first one, I was very, very disappointed, sorely disappointed at the board."

A judge found Rodrigues guilty of breaking into a Manoa home, tying up a woman and her daughter, and robbing them. The 26-year-old, who earlier installed an alarm system in the house, maintains he's a victim of mistaken identity.

"Can you imagine sitting in a jail cell and not having done anything wrong?" Harrison said. "I mean that's the most ignoble injustice you can ever receive."

"This minimum term is consistent with the seriousness of the offenses that inmate Rodrigues had committed," Russell Uehara, deputy prosecutor, said. "Hopefully now, the victims can lead a normal life."

Rodrigues' attorney vows to continue this fight. It's a case that began six year ago.

"It's been a long time."

Rodrigues' attorney plans to file another motion at the state level. If that fails, he plans to take the case to Federal Court.