The burglary trial of a man who led a brief occupation of 'Iolani Palace and its grounds last year was sent to the jury yesterday.

David Sereno, defense lawyer for James Akahi, assailed the credibility of the state's main witness, Henry Nobriga, in his closing argument.

"This guy needs a better memory to keep his lies straight," Sereno said of Nobriga, a retired police officer now working as an attorney general's investigator.

"If you don't believe Nobriga, they have no case," the defense lawyer said. "Injustice stops here. It stops here today."

Deputy attorney general Mark Miyahira acknowledged that Nobriga did a less than perfect job.

"Clearly there were mistakes done in investigating this case," Miyahira said.

Nobriga's initial report on the case "was not complete" and Nobriga didn't do "the best job of testifying" on the witness stand yesterday, Miyahira said.

But, he said, the evidence clearly showed that Akahi and his followers broke into the palace the evening of Aug. 15, 2008.

"There was a very serious, concerted effort to occupy and control" the palace and its grounds, Miyahira said.

Akahi told Nobriga that he wanted to sit on the palace throne and chain himself to it, the prosecutor said.

Akahi, who also calls himself Akahi Nui, claims to be the legitimate heir to the kingdom of Hawai'i.