A 42-year-old Mountain View man was arrested and charged for sex solicitation after exchanging text messages with an undercover law enforcement officer posing as a teenage girl.
Elijah Joseph Stutes Jr. is charged with first-degree electronic enticement of a child, a Class B felony punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment, upon conviction, and resisting arrest, a misdemeanor carrying a jail sentence of up to a year.
The arrest was part of Operation Keiki Shield, according to police and County Prosecutor Kelden Waltjen. Operation Keiki Shield is a statewide, coordinated effort involving local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies tasked with the investigation and prosecution of internet-facilitated crimes against children.
The sting operation took place in Hilo via the internet with investigators posing as underage teens.
According to court documents filed by police, Homeland Security Investi-gations Agent Renee Radavich created a fake account on the online dating app HILY with a profile name “Abby,” identifying herself as 33 years old with photos of a female Maui police officer.
The “Abby” account started receiving messages from an “Elijah” — identified in documents as Stutes — between Friday and Saturday afternoon. In the messages, documents state, “Abby” told Stutes she was 14, with Stutes replying “Wow you look so much older.”
After much texting and alleged messages from Stutes that can’t be published in a family newspaper, Stutes told “Abby” on Saturday afternoon, documents state, that he was at the Downtown Hilo Panda Express wearing a hoodie and carrying a laptop computer bag and a black-and-white umbrella.
“Abby” reportedly replied that she was by the canoe hale on the Hilo Bayfront and requested Stutes bring her some food there.
According to documents, Stutes was intercepted and arrested by Hawaii Police Department Detective Zenas Pacheco and Officer Wyatt Kaili-Leong, who allege Stutes shoved his umbrella into Kaili-Leong’s face and attempted to flee. Kaili-Leong grabbed one of Stutes’ legs and tackled him, with both officers handcuffing Stutes, documents state.
During booking, Stutes is alleged to have said to Officer Corey Kaneko, “Am I here for the warrant or the little girl, entrapment thing?” and “That’s why I didn’t say anything about penetration on the phone.”
Upon being read his Miranda rights, Stutes requested a lawyer and didn’t make a statement, according to documents.
At Stutes’ initial court appearance Monday, Hilo District Judge Jeffrey Hawk denied a defense request to free Stutes on supervised release, a form of cashless bail. He maintained Stutes’ bail at $53,000 and ordered him to return to court Wednesday for a preliminary hearing.
That hearing, in all likelihood, won’t happen, because also on Monday, prosecutors charged Stutes with an information complaint, with a judge affirming that probable cause exists to try Stutes on the charges. That complaint moves the case to Hilo Circuit Judge Peter Kubota for arraignment and plea.
“Protecting our keiki from sexual predators is a top priority of our office,” Waltjen said in a statement Monday. Operation Keiki Shield is a collaborative effort by the Hawaii Island law enforcement community along with state and federal partners to prevent child sexual exploitation and abuse.”
Stutes remains in custody at Hawaii Community Correctional Center.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald
