Three Wai'anae men were charged yesterday afternoon with second-degree murder in connection with the beating death of a man Sept. 1 in Wai'anae.

Dillion K. Lepolo, 22; Julius F. Mitchell, 35; and Lugavai L. Momoe, 32, were each charged with one count of second-degree murder. Bail for the three was set at $100,000 each.

The men are accused of beating to death Roger Haudenshild, 47, in the parking lot of the Wai'anae Market following a traffic incident.

Witnesses told police that three men repeatedly stomped on Haudenshild's head and also punched and kicked him until he went unconscious.

Haudenshild was taken to Wai'anae Coast Comprehensive Health Center, where he was pronounced dead.

The incident began when Haudenshild, who was riding a bicycle, got into a fight following a traffic incident with Lepolo, police said. The two men began to argue and then came to blows on Farrington Highway near Old Government Road.

Witnesses broke up the fight, but as Lepolo was leaving the scene, he told Haudenshild that he was going to "pick up his friends and come back to kill him," according to an affidavit filed in Honolulu District Court. Lepolo left and Haudenshild and a witness went to the Wai'anae Market about 100 yards from the fight, police said.

At about 6:30 p.m., Lepolo and two other men, identified in the court document as Mitchell and Momoe, pulled into the parking lot of the market, got out of their car and began to savagely beat Haudenshild. A witness said the beating lasted about five minutes and that Haudenshild was unconscious for part of the time.

When the beating ended, the three suspects turned to witnesses and said they "better not say anything or they will kill them too," the affidavit said. The men got back into the car and drove off on Farrington Highway toward Makaha, the affidavit said.

A witness identified Lepolo as the man who got into the fight with Haudenshild and also identified Mitchell and Momoe as taking part in the beating, the affidavit said.

Police contacted each of the suspects to inform them that they were wanted for murder. Lepolo and Mitchell surrendered at the main police station on South Beretania Street Tuesday night, and Momoe surrendered Wednesday morning.

Mitchell has four felony convictions, including three for auto theft and one for a weapons violation in 1999, according to records obtained from the Hawai'i Criminal Justice Data Center. Mitchell was sentenced to three concurrent five-year jail terms for the auto theft convictions and 10 years for the gun conviction, records show.

Mitchell also has misdemeanor convictions for reckless driving, driving without a license and contempt of court, according to court records.

Momoe and Lepolo were convicted on March 10 for disorderly conduct, a misdemeanor, and were fined $100 each.

A conviction for second-degree murder carries a mandatory prison term of life with the possibility of parole.

The men are scheduled to make their initial court appearance today.

Reach Curtis Lum at culum@honoluluadvertiser.com.