KAILUA-KONA — A Kailua-Kona man was sentenced Thursday to nearly a quarter century in prison for recording sexually explicit pictures of a 15-year-old girl and her 2-year-old daughter more than three years ago.
Michael Phillip Patrakis, 46, was ordered to serve 292 months — or 24.3 years — of imprisonment for the production of child pornography of two minor females during a hearing before U.S. District Court Judge Leslie E. Kobayashi in Honolulu.
Patrakis must also forfeit numerous electronic devices, pay a $10,000 assessment under the Justice of Victims of Trafficking Act, and serve 20 years of supervised release. He will also be required to register as a sex offender.
In handing down her sentence, Kobayashi said that Patrakis’ actions caused “incalculable harm” and she hopes the sentence acts as a “deterrence to others.”
Patrakis pleaded guilty March 6 in U.S. District Court in Honolulu to two counts of sexually exploiting a minor, one count for each victim. In exchange for his pleas, federal prosecutors agreed to drop charges of sexual exploitation of a minor, distribution of pornography and sex trafficking of a minor.
The 46-year-old had faced a mandatory minimum prison term of 15 years and maximum 30, followed by a minimum of five years and up to a lifetime of court supervision. Sex offender registration was also required.
The sentence handed down Thursday, however, was longer than the 18-year term Assistant U.S. Attorney Darren Chin had agreed to request as part of the plea deal.
“Defendant Patrakis preyed on the vulnerabilities of these two minor females,” U.S. Attorney Kenji M. Price said Thursday. “With the collaboration of our local, state, and federal law enforcement, the apprehension and prosecution of Patrakis put an end to the abuse. While his abhorrent actions cannot be undone, today’s sentence reflects the message that predators will be held accountable in our community.”
Hawaii County police and prosecutors initially charged Patrakis in September 2015 with 11 counts, including promoting child abuse, kidnapping, drug possession and other charges. In November 2015, an indictment brought the total charges filed against Patrakis to 17. The additional cases were primarily drug-related.
Local prosecutors turned the case over for federal prosecution in February 2016.
A criminal complaint filed Feb. 25, 2016, in U.S. District Court in Honolulu charged Patrakis with 28 offenses. He faced 27 counts of producing depictions of a minor involved in sexually explicit conduct and one count of sex trafficking of a minor.
According to the 2016 criminal complaint and supporting affidavit, the 15-year-old girl and her daughter moved into a rented room in Patrakis’ home starting in March 2015. The teenage girl’s father prepaid three months of his daughter’s rent. Patrakis’ minor sons also resided at the Kumu Place home.
The girl told authorities that Patrakis took pictures and video of the two of them having sex and that Patrakis posted the pictures online to meet other people for sex. She also said Patrakis arranged for her to have sex for money through advertisements on Craigslist and that she used some of her share of the money to buy drugs from Patrakis.
After multiple delays in holding a required preliminary hearing to support the charges in the complaint, a federal grand jury handed down a five-count indictment against Patrakis on Feb. 23, 2017. It charged Patrakis with three counts of sexual exploitation of a child and one count each distribution of pornography and sex trafficking of a minor.
Patrakis pleaded not guilty to the charges on Feb. 27, 2017. And, after numerous trial continuances, he pleaded guilty to the two counts of sexually exploiting a minor a year later, weeks before he was slated to go on trial.
Patrakis has been in custody without bail at the Honolulu Federal Detention Center.