EXCLUSIVE: One of Hawaii's most wanted arrested in Florida

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - One of Hawaii's most wanted criminals has been arrested in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Luke Warner was acting as a police informant when he fled. He'd been helping federal agents in Hawaii bust drug suppliers, and was allowed to travel to the mainland in early 2015. He was supposed to return in May, but he didn't.

Warner grabbed headlines in 2012, when police called a news conference to show the guns and drugs they recovered after raiding Warner's Waikiki pawn shop.

Once he was caught, Warner made deals with law enforcement to avoid lengthy sentences, sources say.

The cooperation got him a reduced, 10-year sentence, and he was allowed to travel to the mainland to help his elderly mother on the East Coast.  He was scheduled to surrender at the Honolulu Federal Detention Center, but never showed up.

Authorities said he was difficult to track down because he was well-financed from his pawn shop, and knew some of the tricks law enforcement use because of his work with them.

Sources say he was arrested in Fort Lauderdale last week, but used an alias and was let go. The Florida police officer later remembered an alert that had Warner's picture on it.

Police and deputy U.S. Marshals were able to track him down again and arrest him Monday.

Copyright 2016 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.