Daughter of 77-year-old who died after ‘physical force’ arrest seeks answers as probe continues
“My dad would be alive. If he didn’t have those injures, he’d still be alive." Thomas Matias, 77, died after a ‘physical force’ arrest by two Honolulu police officers after he was spotted on a stolen moped late last year. The officers used "physical force" to capture Matias after he allegedly spotted him on the stolen bike. The Honolulu medical examiner confirmed that Matias' injuries to the officers contributed to his death. His daughter, Darla Ann, has shared new information about the arrest and has sought answers from the police department. She questions if Matias’ size and appearance may have led officers to believe he was younger or possibly someone else. The police department responded to HNN Investigates by stating that the investigation will include what occurred while Matias was riding in police custody.
Publicerad : 4 veckor sedan förbi Allyson Blair i
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - HNN Investigates has obtained new information on a manslaughter case involving two Honolulu police officers.
HPD previously confirmed the officers used “physical force” to capture 77-year-old Thomas Matias after he was spotted on a stolen moped late last year. Matias was subsequently found dead.
Now, Matias’ daughter is speaking out, sharing what her father told his family about the arrest.
For months, Darla Ann Matias has wanted to make her father’s case public, providing HNN Investigates with pictures, medical documents and details on what her father said.
Last week, the Honolulu medical examiner confirmed that the injuries Matias suffered at the hands of the two police officers contributed to his death.
“My dad would be alive. If he didn’t have those injures, he’d still be alive,” she said.
“I have no doubt about that.”
On the evening of Dec. 28, Matias was having trouble with his phone so, his daughter says, he went to the T-Mobile store at Ala Moana Center to get a new one.
Afterwards, Darla Ann Matias said, “He told my aunt he forgot where he parked the moped. So he was kind of looking around for it. He found it.”
She says he went to start the moped and the next thing he knew, he was on the ground.
“He was grabbed by the back of his shirt and yanked off the bike,” Matias said.
“He said they were beating me. It ultimately caused three fractured ribs a fractured cheekbone. Abrasions to the back of his head front of his face.”
Now, she questions if her father’s physical appearance — specifically his size and the way he dressed — may have led officers to believe he was younger or maybe even someone else.
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“He was probably 5-foot-6 and at the time of death, 110 pounds,” Matias said.
“My dad’s style. He likes to wear bandanas on his head. Some kind of hat.”
She said that once officers placed her father in their vehicle, “One commented he didn’t know he was a 77-year-old man.”
In a news conference on March 20, HPD Chief Joe Logan said the department’s Crime Reduction Unit was conducting “hotspot operations” in the Ala Moana area on the day Matias was arrested in an attempt to crack down on vehicle break-ins and thefts.
“Officers stopped a male who they believe was operating a stolen moped,” Logan said.
“Physical force was used by the officers to make the arrest, which resulted in the male sustaining injuries to his face and torso.”
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Logan went on to say: “The 77-year-old male was taken to the hospital where he refused treatment and was subsequently booked for unauthorized control of a propelled vehicle and released pending further investigation.”
HNN Investigates asked Matias if her father knew the moped was stolen.
She responded, “He bought it from someone from what my aunt said. For $500.”
While Thomas Matias does have a criminal record, a background check revealed he hadn’t been in trouble in nearly a decade.
As for the chief’s statement that Matias refused medical treatment, his daughter said: “He told them he didn’t want to get admitted because the officer said if they ask you if you want to be admitted tell them no, so he did.”
It’s a point she’s conveyed repeatedly, going back to an email she sent HNN Investigates on Feb. 7.
She wrote, “While riding in the patrol car with HPD officers, they told my father ‘if they ask you if you want to be admitted, tell them no.’”
HNN asked HPD if Logan could sit down with us for an interview to discuss Matias’ claims.
In an email, a department spokesperson responded that, “The investigation will include what occurred while Mr. Matias was in police custody.”
HPD said no charges have been filed in the case, and the two officers remain on restricted duty.
Two days after Matias’ arrest, he told his sister what happened, Darla Ann Matias said.
It was then that she took several photographs that showed injuries to Matias’ face before calling 911 so he could be seen in the emergency room.
At the news conference, Logan said, “Paramedics and police officers went to the male’s home to provide medical assistance. The male told responding officers that he had been assaulted by police officers two days earlier. He was then transported to the hospital where he was found to have multiple rib and facial fractures.”
Logan also said, “For reasons unknown, the male left the hospital several hours later that same day.”
Darla Ann Matias provided HNN Investigates with medical documents from Straub Hospital disputing the chief’s claim that her father just up and left.
According to the paperwork, “the patient was discharged in satisfactory condition.”
Eleven days later, Thomas Matias was found dead inside his home.
According to a preliminary autopsy report, his cause of death was listed as combined effects of heart disease, a subtype of pneumonia due to rib fractures from blunt force trauma to the chest, and emphysema. The manner of death is listed as homicide.
“According to the medical examiner’s office, homicide refers to a volitional act committed by another person to cause harm which resulted in or contributed to the death,” Logan said.
“Homicide does not criminal nature of the act, criminal intent or wrongdoing.”
When asked what questions Darla Ann Matias had for Logan, she responded, “What would he do if it was his father? What kind of justice would he want if it was his father?”
The manslaughter investigation is being conducted internally by HPD’s Criminal Investigation Division and the department’s Professional Standards Office.