Man charged in alleged love triangle murder of acupuncturist free after posting $1M bail

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - A 34-year-old man charged in an alleged love triangle murder of a Waipahu acupuncturist last month has been released after posting $1 million bail.

Eric Thompson, 34, is charged with second-degree murder for the death of 47-year-old Jon Tokuhara.

He was arrested shortly after 6 p.m. Monday.

Court documents show police used video surveillance to identify Thompson’s truck and link him to the murder scene. Thompson’s wife was subsequently connected to the victim.

The two were having an affair, police said.

Thompson allegedly walked into Tokuhara Acupuncture and Healthcare about 6:15 p.m. on Jan. 12.

Investigators say security cameras show the 34-year-old was inside the business for just 45 seconds. Detectives believe Thompson quickly fired three shots from a .22-caliber gun he had stashed in a shopping bag he was carrying and fled.

Police claim the suspect dropped his hat while walking back to his Chevrolet Silverado that was parked down the street.

Detectives recovered the hat from a homeless person who was seen on surveillance video picking it up.

That man told police he had set it aside at his campsite and didn’t wear it again. Samples of hair and fibers were collected from the hat.

According to an HPD criminologist Thompson “cannot be excluded as a possible contributor.”

Criminologist Michelle Amorin added, “Using the most conservative frequency estimate calculated, approximately 131,200 unrelated individuals would have to be evaluated before expecting to find an individual that would have a DNA profile that cannot be excluded.”

The documents also detail a two-month affair between Thompson’s wife and Tokuhara. She was said to be a client at the clinic. Thompson allegedly found out about the cheating last July.

The suspect is expected to be back in court on Thursday.

Related Coverage:

Copyright 2022 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.