KAILUA-KONA — A Ka’u man has been indicted by a Kona grand jury for a 2017 sexual assault of a minor while serving an intermittent prison sentence for similar charges dating back to 2011.
Ryan Queja, whose last known address was Pahala, was indicted on two counts of first-degree sexual assault with a minor who was at least 14 years old but less than 16 at the time of the assault.
He was also charged with witness tampering for “intentionally engaging in conduct to induce a witness or a person he believed was about to be called as a witness to testify falsely or withhold any testimony,” according to the indictment.
Ryan Queja pleaded guilty in February 2011 to first-degree sexual assault, second-degree sexual assault, two counts of third-degree sexual assault and third-degree attempted sexual assault. He was sentenced to 24 months incarceration to be served intermittently with a minimum of three months each year and 900 hours of community service.
Queja, a registered sex offender, was still serving his intermittent sentence for the 2011 sexual assault when he allegedly re-offended in 2017. He was released on probation for the earlier assault in December 2018.
If convicted of the latest charges, Queja faces 20 years incarceration with a mandatory minimum sentence of six years, eight months.
A bench warrant was issued for his arrest and Queja was taken into custody on Monday. He is being held on $100,000 bail pending an initial court appearance today.