LIHU‘E — A registered sex offender accused of sexually assaulting a male tourist will be arraigned in Fifth Circuit Court at the end of the month. On Wednesday, Lihu‘e resident Ernest R. Moniz Jr. waived his preliminary hearing and Judge
LIHU‘E — A registered sex offender accused of sexually assaulting a male tourist will be arraigned in Fifth Circuit Court at the end of the month.
On Wednesday, Lihu‘e resident Ernest R. Moniz Jr. waived his preliminary hearing and Judge Trudy Senda set the date for his arraignment for 9 a.m. on June 29, a clerk said. He was arraigned in district court on Monday on five counts of first-degree sexual assault, two counts of third-degree sexual assault and one count of kidnapping stemming from a June 6 incident involving a visiting man.
According to the Kaua‘i Police Department arrest log, officers arrested Moniz at 3:15 p.m. on June 7.
Moniz is represented by the public defender’s office.
According to the sex offender registry at the Hawai‘i Criminal Justice Data Center, Moniz pleaded no contest to two counts of third-degree sexual assault in Fifth Circuit Court during June 1995. His original charges included those two counts, as well as first-degree attempted sexual assault and four counts of promoting intoxicating liquor to a minor. Judge George Masuoka sentenced Moniz to 10 years prison time, with credit given for time served.
People interested in identifying sex offenders in their neighborhood can access the sex offender registry at www.sexoffenders.hawaii.gov.
