Democratic congressional hopeful Kirill Basin is facing serious criminal allegations after authorities say he stormed a Maui government building and threatened county workers before fleeing the scene, triggering a manhunt that ended with his arrest hours later.
Kirill Basin, 40, a candidate for Hawaii’s 2nd Congressional District, was taken into custody Friday afternoon and charged with first-degree terroristic threatening after an incident at the Maui County building in Wailuku, according to local reports.
Authorities said the confrontation unfolded around 9:30 a.m. when Basin allegedly entered the government facility and threatened two county employees while armed with a handgun. Officials said he left the building before police arrived.
Officers arrested Basin at his residence roughly three hours later.
The arrest capped off a tumultuous stretch for the longshot congressional candidate, whose behavior had drawn increasing attention from local officials in recent weeks.
🚨 UPDATE: Police have just arrested DEMOCRAT Congressional candidate Kirill Basin in Hawaii for pulling a FIREARM on officials after storming a government building
He’s been charged with terrorist threatening in the first degree.
Democrats are filled with utter psychos! 🤯 pic.twitter.com/zrRY3wdSOk
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) June 1, 2026
Just days before Friday’s incident, Basin publicly announced that he had filed a lawsuit accusing police officers of abusing him during a previous detention.
“This is the lawsuit I served today. It basically outlines how 3 police officers tortured me for 14 hours,” he wrote. “That’s the gist. It’ll never happen to anyone again.”
In the lawsuit, Basin alleged officers subjected him to “prolonged and deliberate infliction of physical, sexual and psychological abuse” while he was in custody.
Court records show Basin filed the lawsuit on his own without legal representation.
Authorities said concerns about Basin’s conduct had been building before Friday’s arrest.
On Wednesday, police were called to a South Maui town hall meeting after Basin became involved in a heated dispute with Maui County Council member Tom Cook and members of his staff. Officers ultimately escorted him from the event.
According to court filings, the confrontation did not end there.
After leaving the meeting, Basin allegedly approached Cook’s executive assistant, Jared Agtunong, in the parking lot, prompting police to intervene a second time.
Agtunong later sought a temporary restraining order, alleging that Basin had sent him a series of threatening and disturbing messages.
“I did not answer Basin’s phone call, but he left a message telling me that I’m a piece of trash, said I should think of my family and insisted I call him back,” Agtunong wrote.
“In additional texts sent on the same day, Basin wished me luck with prison then at 9:00 p.m., Basin’s text said ‘you’re f–ked,’” he continued.
The petition was filed shortly after 3 p.m. Friday, and a judge granted the temporary restraining order less than two hours later.
The latest allegations are not Basin’s first run-in with law enforcement. Records show he was arrested on May 2 on a disorderly conduct charge, though authorities released few details about that case.
The criminal case against Kirill Basin remains ongoing.
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