A California family’s vacation at a popular Maui resort took a horrifying turn when a group of local youths allegedly attacked them in an alleged racially motivated assault. One family member says the ringleader of the group threatened the family before the Friday-night assault, saying, “We’re going to beat up the haole boys,” a Hawaiian slang term commonly used to refer to a white person.
In a report by Hawaii News Now, relatives of the California family described the vicious attack that left one family member needing emergency medical treatment for a large gash in the head caused by one attacker striking the victim with a chair. The man was treated at a local hospital for the gruesome injury that required 13 staples to close.
The incident began Friday night at the Kaanapali Alii resort in West Maui and involved approximately 30 people, according to the Maui Police Department. The fight occurred at the resort’s barbecue area and resulted in at least six people suffering injuries that required medical attention. Police arrested a 20-year-old resident of Maui on suspicion of assault.
Family member Joseph Headfield described to Hawaii News Now how the fight began with verbal taunts from the group saying, “There were three females, one of which was the ringleader. She got up in people’s faces, said ‘We’re going to beat up your boys tonight. We’re going to beat up the haole boys.’”
Another family member moved children away from the group as tensions began to rise. Family members say the group of local youths was harassing visitors before the assault began. A witness described the assault, saying the family was being slapped, punched, and kicked by the group of youths, with the most serious injury resulting in the man who suffered the bloody gash to his head when struck by the chair.
The family believes the attack was racially motivated due to the threats made in the lead-up to the melee and should be investigated as a hate crime. Daniel, a family member who spoke to Hawaii News Now, said, “Our group consisted of ages from 85 to 11. We were just not expecting any of this. We were on a private resort property, and we were just overwhelmed, completely, totally overwhelmed.
According to the Maui Police Department, when officers arrived around 10:00 pm on Friday, they encountered approximately 15 people gathered near the pool at the resort. Seven members of a California family provided investigators with information about the alleged assault, saying the attackers had fled from the private resort before police arrived.
The incident remains under investigation.
Randy Clark is a 32-year veteran of the United States Border Patrol. Before his retirement, he served as the Division Chief for Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol Stations within the Del Rio, Texas, Sector. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @RandyClarkBBTX.