- Isaac and Lehua Kalua were accused of killing their adopted daughter Isabella, according to new documents.
- Their elder daughter said that the parents duct-taped Isabella's mouth and nose and locked her in a dog cage, according to the documents.
In new court documents made public on Friday, Hawaiian investigators alleged that Isaac and Lehua Kalua duct-taped their 6-year old adopted daughter's mouth and nose and left her in a dog cage.
The couple reported their adopted daughter Isabella, also known as Ariel Sellers, missing on September 13, but investigators now believe the girl was dead at least a month before that time and that the parents covered it up and hid evidence, according to the Honolulu Police Department.
A complaint submitted by Detective Alan Oku with the Honolulu Police Department, made public as the couple appeared in court and were charged with second-degree murder, was reviewed by Insider. If found guilty, the couple faces life in prison without parole.
The documents allege that new surveillance footage and an interview with Isabella's older biological sister, who was also adopted by the couple along with another sibling.
According to the complaint, authorities recorded an interview with Isabella's older sister, who was not named, where she alleged that her parents killed her sister and then covered it up.
The sister told authorities that Isabella "was in the bathroom in a dog cage, duct tape on her mouth and nose, and she didn't wake up."
The sister alleged that she saw her sister in the bathroom at 3:30 a.m. local time on September 12, because her parents woke her up, according to the documents. "Lehua then filled the bathtub with water and put I.P.K. in it to see if she would wake up, but it did not work," the complaint says. The sister "then had to help carry I.P.K.to their bedroom," the complaint added.
Insider reached out to Justin Tanaka, who is representing the Kalua parents.
The sister, who was interviewed on November 5, told authorities that she was told to keep it a secret around two months ago, and that "she knows I.P.K. is dead because she was there."
According to the complaint, the sister also told authorities that Isaac faked a COVID-19 diagnosis and took a day off of work in September to help Lehua cover up the death.
The sister told authorities Isaac took off work to "help mom" and "get rid of the stuff...evidence."
In the interview, the sister also shared that the parents used the dog cage on Isabella "plenty of times," and did not own a dog. Isabella's sister told authorities that her parents did not feed her younger sister and that Isabella would sneak out of her room at night to eat — so her parents bought a dog cage and used it on her frequently, as well as duct tape.
In addition to the interview, Honolulu authorities also unearthed key new surveillance footage, which they alleged the couple initially said did not exist.
"On September 13, 2021, video surveillance was recovered from the Kalua residence," the complaint says, noting that Isaac Kalua had initially told authorities that their camera surveillance system constantly turned "on and off."
Prior to Friday, authorities were only able to access video surveillance from the Kalua household dating until August 18.
FBI agents are still searching for the remains of