A judge has granted a bail reduction to a prominent Maui organic farmer accused of molesting four minor girls on Hawaii Island between 1996 and 2007.
A judge has granted a bail reduction to a prominent Maui organic farmer accused of molesting four minor girls on Hawaii Island between 1996 and 2007.
Hilo Circuit Judge Greg Nakamura reduced bail Monday for 57-year-old Michael Martin Zelko from $1 million to $260,000 and allowed him to return to Maui where he will be under house arrest with electronic monitoring.
Zelko pleaded not guilty in August to 13 felony sex assault charges stemming from the alleged abuse of the girls, who were all minors ages 14 or younger when the acts allegedly occurred. The alleged victims are now adults.
Zelko has been in custody at Hawaii Community Correctional Center since his arrest. His Honolulu attorney, Michael Green, asked the judge to reduce Zelko’s bail to $100,000. He noted Zelko has no prior criminal offenses, only two traffic offenses, and disputed a bail study prepared by the state that found Zelko is likely to re-offend.
“I’m certainly troubled by the allegations,” Green said. “When I read the reports, it goes so far as for one girl to say he never did anything. And his daughter or wife were present the entire time that these things happened. I mean, I have one young woman that comes forward nine years later and said, ‘You know, I always thought it was fairly weird what he did. Now, as I grow older, I think it was criminal.’”
“Your Honor, I think that’s inappropriate for defense to be arguing facts on one of the victims at this time,” Deputy Prosecutor Kimberly Angay interjected.
“That’s fine,” the judge replied.
“I’m just saying that a million dollars for someone that has two traffic citations in his life, and a period of nine years before he was accused of anything, never committed a crime …,” Green said. His voice at that point trailed off and was unintelligible from the courtroom gallery.
Angay argued for Zelko’s bail to be maintained at $1 million and said prosecutors have “two primary concerns.”
“These 13 Class A felonies with four victims all have (possible) extended terms of imprisonment, which makes the maximum punishment life without the possibility of parole,” she said. “… The state’s also concerned (about) danger to community. These offenses were committed when these four victims were extremely young, elementary (school) age.
“The defense’s proposed plan that he go back to Maui and wear a GPS does not sufficiently address the state’s concerns. … With his work, from what I understand, he’s a community farmer and gives lectures. The court cannot be assured he does not have access to children.”
The judge granted the bail and ordered that Zelko not have any contact with minors 18 or younger or the complainants in the case. Zelko turned in his passport and signed an extradition waiver that would permit the state to return Zelko to Hawaii if he flees while awaiting trial, which is scheduled for Jan. 9.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.