Share and Follow
Inset: Avery Nissen (Hawaii Police Department). Background: A section of Honokōhau Harbor in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii (Google Maps).
Avery Nissen, 21, faces charges including second-degree attempted murder, first-degree assault, and second-degree assault, as revealed by the Hawaii Police Department on Friday. He is currently detained with bail set at $1,570,000.
The incident occurred on Thursday afternoon when Nissen was aboard a fishing boat with the captain and other passengers near Kailua-Kona, a town located on Hawaii’s western shore. The group was part of a scheduled three-hour snorkeling tour, authorities stated.
Police report that Nissen, a resident of eastern Kansas, allegedly attacked the 62-year-old captain using a fillet knife. Other individuals on the boat managed to subdue him, preventing further harm.
Officers allege that at some point, Nissen attacked the 62-year-old boat captain with a fillet knife. The suspect — who is from eastern Kansas — had to be restrained by other people on the boat.
At about 3:21 p.m., patrol officers responded to the Honokōhau Harbor in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, because they were told a fishing vessel “was returning from sea with the victim and suspect of a stabbing incident onboard.” Once the boat came in from the sea, Nissen was arrested.
The boat captain “sustained a stab wound to the lower abdomen and numerous knife cuts to the head and hands,” police said on Friday. He was brought to an area hospital “where he remains in stable condition.”
Authorities say the motive behind the alleged attack is unknown, and they asked anyone with additional information about it to contact them.
Nissen is scheduled to appear in Kona District Court on Monday.