Ewa Beach man indicted on charges of sexual abuse of minor

An Oahu grand jury Friday returned an indictment against an Ewa Beach man, charging him with 32 counts related to the alleged sexual abuse of a minor, who was under the age of 14.

The grand jury charges against Michael Garcia, 28, span a period from Sept. 23 to Dec. 3, with descriptions ranging from producing or participating in child pornography to violating the privacy of the minor child by installing devices to record, observe or broadcast the child in a state of undress. There were also charges dealing with failing to maintain age verification records of sexual performers and affix it to each pornographic film, videotape or computer image as required by Hawaii state law. Some charges also referenced sexual assault of the minor.

The court ordered the defendant to be held without bail per a grand jury bench warrant.

Also, an Oahu grand jury also returned an earlier indictment against Garcia on Dec. 7 for six counts, including continuous sexual assault of a minor under the age of 14, first-degree sexual assault and four counts of third-­degree sexual assault. These earlier grand jury criminal charges stem from incidents that took place between May 9, 2021, and Dec. 3.

Following the previous grand jury indictment, Garcia posted bail, which had been set at $100,000. Additionally, Judge Fa’auuga L. To’oto’o granted the defendant’s request to travel to Texas to visit his mother from Dec. 26 to Jan. 13.

Court records, including a complaint filed by Honolulu Police Department Detective Jolon Wagner, and a request for a temporary restraining order filed by the child’s mother describe multiple alleged violations of the child.

Wagner’s complaint filed Dec. 5 said Garcia engaged in “three or more acts of sexual penetration and/or sexual contact” with the child.

In a request for a Temporary Restraining Order, filed Dec. 3, the child’s mother wrote that Garcia had threatened the child by saying that if the child disclosed the incidents, it would cause the child’s mother to go to jail, the child’s brother to be placed into foster care and the child to end up in a mental hospital. “This has been going on for four years,” the woman said in the TRO request.

If convicted of any of the charges, Garcia could face sentencing as a multiple offender, which carries an extended prison term.