(BIVN) – Three convicted sex offenders were arrested during a three-day law enforcement operation in the Kona area last week.
The Hawaiʻi Department of the Attorney General says the operation was aimed at ensuring registered sex offenders comply with state registration requirements.
The Hawaiʻi AG Investigations Division Sex Offender Registry Team conducted the compliance checks in partnership with the United States Marshals Service, the Department of Law Enforcement, the Hawaiʻi Police Department and the Hawaiʻi County Prosecutor’s Office.
From the Hawai‘i Department of the Attorney General:
Investigators conducted compliance checks on multiple registered sex offenders who had been identified as potentially out of compliance with Hawaiʻi’s Sex Offender Registry requirements. As a result of the operation, several individuals were brought back into compliance and three adult males were arrested for allegedly failing to comply with Hawaiʻi’s sex offender registry laws.
The three men who were arrested were Joseph Debus, 56, of Kailua-Kona, Garth Coleman, 53, of Holualoa and Alexsandr Skelcey, 34, of Kailua-Kona.
“Sex offender registration requirements exist to protect our communities and ensure law enforcement knows where convicted offenders are living,” said Tom Alipio, chief of the Department of the Attorney General’s Investigations Division. “Compliance operations like this send a clear message that we will actively monitor the registry, investigate violations and work closely with our law enforcement partners to hold offenders accountable when they fail to meet their legal obligations.”
“Operations like this allow us to verify that offenders are maintaining strict compliance with registration laws and those who aren’t will be addressed immediately. We will continue to leverage these multi-agency partnerships to keep our island communities safe,” said Hawaiʻi Police Chief Reed Mahuna.
The three men are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
