An elderly architect convicted of bribery for trying to slip a Honolulu permit reviewer some cash – what he said was $20 for oxtail soup – was sentenced on Thursday to two years of probation. 

Hawaiʻi Circuit Court Judge Kevin Souza found Kiyoshi Toi, 92, guilty last year of trying to pass money to a city employee through a handshake in November 2022. The Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting worker, Alexander Laurente, refused the money and reported the incident. 

Honolulu deputy prosecutor Lydia Fuatagavi asked the court for two days of prison time, minus time served, and four years of probation. But Souza said incarceration would cause an “excessive hardship.”  

Two years of probation will achieve the goals of sentencing, the judge said, which include acknowledging the seriousness of the offense and serving as a deterrent to others. Toi must also pay a $10,000 fine and attend an ethics class, the judge ruled. 

“We cannot tolerate, in this community, a pay-to-play culture,” Souza said. “This is called public corruption, and this is how the community loses trust in our government institutions.” 

The case, prosecuted by Honolulu Prosecuting Attorney Steve Alm’s office, follows a string of high-profile federal bribery prosecutions in recent years involving DPP. Five former DPP workers and architect Bill Wong were indicted in 2021 and later pleaded guilty. All served prison time. 

In those cases, employees admitted taking much larger sums of money — ranging from $820 to over $100,000 — in exchange for giving customers special treatment. 

Applicants have sought to cut the permitting line at DPP, whose in-depth review process can drag on for months or even years. Property owners and businesses have complained that prolonged review time drains them financially in holding costs and rising expenses for labor and materials. Mayor Rick Blangiardi, now in his second term, has vowed to fix it but hasn’t declared victory yet. 

On Thursday, Souza acknowledged some of this frustration but said there’s no excuse for Toi’s conduct, which his written ruling described as an “ill-fated attempt at an old-fashioned palm-greasing that harkens back to the bad-old-days at DPP.”

“I understand that in the design and construction industry, Mr. Toi, as the saying goes, time is money, right?” the judge said from the bench. 

“But the design and build professionals in this community cannot be allowed to continue to offer money to DPP personnel to jump the line in terms of their permit applications over everyday citizens who have waited patiently for months, some for years, for their own permit applications to get approved.” 

Toi, his family and his attorney, Leighton Lee, declined to comment after the sentencing hearing.

“The court’s sentence in this case underscores the serious consequences of attempting to bribe a government official and should serve as a deterrent to others,” DPP Director Dawn Takeuchi Apuna said in a statement. “The DPP reminds the public that offering gifts, money, or any benefit to city staff in exchange for favorable treatment is a serious criminal offense.”

Lunch Money Or A Stick Of Gum?

In 2022, Toi was working on a home renovation project in Wahiawā. The permit application had been pending for over a year.

The homeowner testified he felt the job was progressing too slowly, and the person originally hired to shepherd the permit through DPP was let go, leaving Toi in charge of the plans. Toi wouldn’t be paid until the permit was issued.

On Nov. 3, 2022, Toi showed up to DPP without an appointment and asked to meet with the plans examiner, Alexander Laurente, outside the office. According to Laurente, there were outstanding issues with the building plans, including that they weren’t drawn to scale.

When Laurente approached Toi and shook his hand, Laurente said he felt something sharp in his palm. When he asked what it was, Laurente said, the architect responded that it was just a stick of gum and to “take it, just take it.”

Witnesses testified Laurente seemed taken aback, saying “Whoa, whoa, whoa, what is that, that’s not a stick of gum” and trying to create distance from Toi. In a video capturing the interaction, the men are seen sharing a prolonged handshake as Laurente shakes his head and tries to step away.

Toi, an immigrant from Japan, has been an architect for 60 years. At trial, he said he was trying to give Laurente $20 for an oxtail soup lunch to thank him for his help with the permit. Toi said this was in line with a Japanese system of morals called shushin that emphasizes the importance of expressing gratitude. Laurente said Toi never mentioned lunch or expressed thanks.

Souza found Toi guilty of bribery in November.

Architect’s Career Is Over, Attorney Says

Toi had waived his right to a jury trial and his right to silence, opting to make the risky move of taking the stand in his own defense.

Toi’s attorney filed a motion for a new trial this week, but Souza rejected it, noting that the deadline for such a request was within 10 days of the conviction. Lee conceded on Thursday that he had no “incredible oral argument” to offer to support his request.

Even if the motion had been timely, Souza said, he wouldn’t have granted it.

In asking the judge for lenience, Lee noted that Toi has been ostracized in his profession and has been “basically eliminated as an architect.” Lee suggested the judge should account for the price Toi has already paid in his sentencing.

Souza countered with a hypothetical: If Lee, as a defense attorney, had tried to slip the judge some cash, what should the repercussions be?

“I would hope your answer would be that you should be immediately disbarred and punished to the fullest extent of the law,” the judge said.

“It would be, your honor,” Lee said, as Toi sat at the defense table, his head in his hands.

Souza noted Toi has otherwise lived a law-abiding life, his conduct did not cause serious harm to anyone and he is unlikely to reoffend. If Toi attends an ethics class and pays his fine and court fees, Souza said he would consider cutting Toi’s probationary period short.

“I hope that you understand, Mr. Toi, that you placed the DPP employee, Mr. Laurente, in a very, very untenable position by what you did,” the judge said. “Had he taken that money, Mr. Laurente would have been compromised forever going forward in his dealings with you.”