HILO — Hawaii County police and the state Department of Defense are investigating an alleged sexual assault between a cadet and a staff member at Hawaii Youth Challenge Academy in Hilo.
Lt. Col. Charles Anthony, director of public affairs for the Department of Defense in Hawaii, said a female cadet at the Youth Challenge Academy’s Hilo campus alleged on Tuesday that a male cadre staff member inappropriately touched her.
Anthony declined to give any more information about the incident or the alleged victim or perpetrator, saying protection of the cadet’s privacy is of special importance because of her age. Cadets at the academy are between the ages of 16 and 18. Cadre staff are adults, Anthony said, primarily drawn from retired military personnel and current members of the National Guard.
Anthony also could not confirm when the assault was alleged to have happened, although a police log of Tuesday incidents lists a sexual assault report that was made at the Youth Challenge Academy’s address on Leilani Street shortly before 7 p.m.
Anthony also noted that men and women are housed in separate areas of the campus.
The Youth Challenge program is a program by the National Guard to support at-risk youth through a five-month military-style residential program. Cadets, male and female high school dropouts, study to complete high school equivalencies while undergoing physical training and performing community service.