A 31-year-old Pahoa man admitted Monday to charges he sexually assaulted a 14-year-old girl last year.
In a deal with prosecutors, Patrick Noah Torres entered guilty pleas to second-degree sexual assault and two counts of second-degree custodial interference. Acting Hilo Circuit Judge Henry Nakamoto ordered Torres to appear for sentencing at 8 a.m. Sept. 21.
Torres, whose trial was schedule to start Monday, was originally charged with two counts of first-degree sexual assault, seven counts of third-degree sexual assault plus two counts each of custodial interference and providing liquor to minors.
Nakamoto asked Torres if he was admitting that on Oct. 23, he “committed a sexual act of penetration upon (the victim), who admitted she was not forced, but felt pressured” and on the same date “took two minors … to Puna, to the tide pools, enticing them to go on the ride … although (Torres) knew (he) had no right to do so.”
“Yes, Your Honor,” Torres replied.
The minors, a boy and girl, told police they were walking to a Puna school in a heavy downpour and stopped for shelter near a store. A man, later identified as Torres, reportedly offered them a ride to school in his black truck, but instead of taking them to school, drove to several locations in Puna and South Hilo, where he sexually assaulted the girl.
The victim, who is younger than the legal age of consent, was uninjured other than the sexual assault, police said.
Second-degree sexual assault is a Class B felony punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment, upon conviction, while second-degree custodial interference is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail.
If convicted of first-degree sexual assault, Torres faced a possible 20-year prison term.
According to terms of the plea agreement, read aloud by the judge, the state agrees to concurrent prison terms for all offenses, while Torres agrees to a prison term “and shall not seek a reduction in sentence until after serving 18 months of incarceration.”
Torres also will be required to register as a sex offender.
Torres is free on $171,500 bail with terms of his release including he stay more than 1,000 feet away from schools, parks and other places where children congregate.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
