A 26-year-old Tongan is one of seven men arrested and charged as part of an undercover operation on Maui in Hawaii.
Finehafo’ou Hafoka of Kahului was arrested on 12 March for Electronic Enticement of a Child in the First Degree and Promoting Pornography for Minors.
Hafoka also was charged with two counts of indecent electronic display to a child.
Bail was set at $150,000.
Between 12 March and 14 March, officers, special agents and analysts posed as minors online and targeted those intending to meet children for sex.
According to a Maui News report, Hafoka, who also was communicating with an undercover officer portraying a 13-year-old girl, sent her two photos of his private area, said Deputy Prosecutor Karen Droscoski.
She said Hafoka went to meet the girl at Foodland Kahului, where he was apprehended.
After being arrested, Hafoka said he “was aware what he was doing was wrong.”
He also admitted to having sexual contact with a relative who was 9 years old when he was 16, Droscoski said.
There was a request for bail to be reduced to $12,000 for Hafoka, who works, has been on Maui for more than 10 years and lives with his family.
Droscoski said Hafoka graduated from Maui High School.
Operation Keiki Shield 7 was hosted by the Maui Police Department and included officers and agents from the Department of the Attorney General, ICAC Taskforce, the Honolulu Police Department, the United States Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Honolulu, the United States Secret Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Operation Keiki Shield is an ongoing operation to identify, locate and arrest offenders who commit Internet-facilitated sex crimes against children.
The operation also aims to identify and rescue victims of child sexual exploitation and abuse.
According to Maui police, a previously unknown child victim of past sexual offenses was identified due to the efforts of investigators participating in this operation.
They are working to locate the victim.
Photo source Maui News