Credit cards could solve Allenby mystery

The thugs Australian golfer Robert Allenby accuses of beating, robbing and abducting him after a night out at a Hawaiian wine bar face more than 10 years in jail if arrested and convicted.

As detectives scoured businesses throughout Honolulu for surveillance footage to solve the mystery of what happened to Allenby, the police announced they had launched second degree robbery and fraudulent use of credit card investigations.

Recent charges had been made on Allenby’s credit cards and detectives were seeking security video and interviewing employees at the premises, police said.

The video could be made public to help identify who used the cards.

“He did report his credit card was stolen so we are following up on a couple of leads on that route,” Honolulu Police Department Captain Rade Vanic told AAP on Tuesday.

“We have detectives out in the area today trying to acquire more video from businesses.”

Second degree robbery is punishable by up to 10 years’ imprisonment in Hawaii while fraudulent use of credit cards has a five-year maximum.

With varying stories from Allenby and homeless woman Charade Keane, who helped the dazed and bruised professional golfer late on Friday night or early Saturday, detectives are trying to reconstruct the incident.

Allenby says he can’t remember much in the hours after being assaulted and robbed.

Capt Vanic said Keane has given police a statement and they will interview her again if needed.

Allenby was drinking with friends at the upmarket Muse wine bar in Waikiki on Friday night and believes he may have been drugged, bashed in the face with a fist or baseball bat, tossed in the boot of a car, robbed and then dumped in a park 10km away.

Keane, however, said she found and helped Allenby a short distance away from Muse.

Capt Vanic said robberies similar to the way Allenby described were not common in Honolulu, a popular destination for tourists from Australia and around the world.

“Honolulu is a big city and there are tourists who, unfortunately, are victims of a crime, but it is not something that happens very frequently in Honolulu,” Capt Vanic said.

Allenby was in Hawaii to compete in the PGA Tour’s Sony Open, but missed the cut on Friday.

The golfer, whose face was badly cut and bruised, announced on Tuesday he would not play in this week’s Humana Challenge event in California, on the advice of his doctor.

“This will enable me to ensure I am fully recovered prior to rejoining the PGA Tour,” Allenby said in a statement.

“I anticipate a full recovery and look forward to returning in the near future.”

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