Eric Thompson: An Affair, a Clinic in Waipahu, and a Killing That Took Two Trials to Resolve
- Strange Case Files
- Apr 3
- 4 min read
A missed dinner, a shooting inside a quiet clinic, and a case built through surveillance footage, DNA, and months of tension inside a marriage.
A Marriage Under Strain
In 2021, Eric Thompson learned that his wife, Joyce Thompson, had been involved in an affair with Jon Tokuhara, an acupuncturist in Waipahu, Hawaii.
According to trial testimony, Joyce had originally met Tokuhara through fertility-related treatment. Prosecutors said the professional relationship later became romantic.
Thompson later testified that he discovered the affair in July 2021 after noticing unusual behavior and reviewing messages and security footage.
The discovery became the center of the case that followed.
The Aftermath of the Affair: Eric Thompson Case
At trial, Thompson said the affair caused serious damage inside the marriage.
He testified that he and Joyce signed a post-nuptial agreement after he learned about the relationship. According to that testimony, the agreement would give him full custody of their daughter if the marriage ended in divorce.
He also told jurors that Joyce had been seeing a psychic, and claimed the psychic had advised her to continue the relationship with Tokuhara.
That detail came from Thompson’s own testimony and became part of the courtroom record, though it was not an independent finding of fact.
The Night Jon Tokuhara Did Not Come Home
On January 13, 2022, Jon Tokuhara did not come home for dinner.
His mother had been expecting him. When he stopped responding and never arrived, she became concerned.
The next morning, she went to the family’s acupuncture clinic in Waipahu to check on him.
Inside, she found her son dead on the floor.
Prosecutors later said Tokuhara had been shot multiple times in the face. Reporting on the case described the killing as a fatal shooting inside the clinic.
The Surveillance Timeline
Investigators later focused on surveillance footage from the area around the clinic.
According to police, a man arrived in a truck, entered the clinic carrying a bag, and left less than a minute later. Public reporting described the visit as lasting about 48 seconds.
For prosecutors, that timeline mattered. They argued it showed someone arriving with a specific purpose and leaving immediately after the shooting.
The state tied that movement to Eric Thompson’s Chevrolet Silverado.
The Bucket Hat
One of the most important pieces of physical evidence in the case was a white bucket hat.
Police said the person seen near the clinic was wearing it. The hat was later recovered, and prosecutors said DNA found on it linked it to Eric Thompson.
That became one of the strongest physical links in the case.
The prosecution relied on that evidence heavily, along with the surveillance footage and the state’s theory of motive.
The Fire at Home
Later that same evening, surveillance footage showed a fire starting in the yard of Thompson’s home.
Detectives later testified that investigators found burned items in the area, including a pot with char marks and a partially burned wheelbarrow.
Prosecutors suggested the fire may have been an attempt to destroy evidence after the shooting.
That detail became part of the state’s argument that the killing had not been random or impulsive, but planned and then followed by efforts to remove what might connect the shooter to it.
The Defense Theory
The defense argued that investigators focused too narrowly on Eric Thompson.
During trial, attorneys suggested that Jon Tokuhara had been involved with multiple women, including women who were already in relationships, and argued that other people may also have had reason to confront him.
That argument was meant to raise doubt about whether police had fully explored other leads.
The prosecution responded that none of those alternate possibilities matched the evidence as closely as Thompson did.
The First Trial
In 2023, Eric Thompson’s first trial ended in a mistrial after jurors could not reach a unanimous verdict.
That result left the case unresolved.
It also showed that the evidence, while serious, was not simple. The case depended on a combination of motive, timing, surveillance footage, and forensic evidence rather than a confession or direct eyewitness account.
The Retrial
When Thompson was retried in 2025, prosecutors presented the same basic theory.
They said he had learned about the affair, carried that anger for months, and eventually shot Jon Tokuhara inside the clinic.
Thompson took the stand in his own defense and denied killing him.
He spoke about the affair, the damage it caused, and his insistence that he was not responsible for Tokuhara’s death.
The Verdict
On February 25, 2025, the second jury found Eric Thompson guilty of second-degree murder and a related firearm charge.
That verdict ended the uncertainty left by the mistrial.
Jurors later rejected the prosecution’s effort to impose a sentence that would remove the possibility of parole.
Sentencing
In June 2025, Thompson was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole.
He also received a sentence on the firearm count, and the court imposed a mandatory minimum of 15 years before parole eligibility.
Reporting after sentencing stated that he is incarcerated at Halawa Correctional Facility and plans to appeal.
Why the Case Drew Attention
The case drew attention because of how ordinary some of its details first seemed.
A wife in an affair. A missed dinner. A mother going to check on her son. A clinic in the middle of a workday.
Then came the rest: the shooting, the brief visit captured on surveillance, the bucket hat, the fire in the yard, and a trial that ended without a verdict before a second jury finally convicted.
It was not a case resolved quickly.
It took two trials before the criminal case reached a conclusion.
Case Facts
Location: Waipahu, Oahu, Hawaii
Year: 2022 killing, 2025 conviction and sentencing
Victim: Jon Tokuhara
Responsible Person: Eric Thompson, convicted in 2025
Outcome: Found guilty of second-degree murder and a firearm charge; sentenced to life with the possibility of parole, with a mandatory minimum of 15 years
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