Posted on: Saturday, August 31, 2002

O'ahu man pleads guilty to sex abuse

By David Waite
Advertiser Courts Writer

A 34-year-old O'ahu man is facing a maximum prison term of 15 years and fine of up to $250,000 after pleading guilty in federal court yesterday to charges that he used the Internet to lure a 13-year-old Kaua'i girl into having sex with him.

Michael Cabrera, a draftsman, told federal Judge Susan Mollway that he was guilty of the charges brought against him following an investigation by the Kaua'i Police Department and U.S. Customs Service.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Lawrence Tong told Mollway that if the case had gone to trial, the evidence would show that Cabrera struck up a relationship with the girl via an Internet "chat room" and through telephone calls and then induced her to go with him to a hotel on Kaua'i.

The evidence would show that Cabrera traveled to Kaua'i and met with the girl May 15 and 16 and videotaped his sexual encounters with her.

When asked by Mollway to explain in his own words what transpired, Cabrera said: "I met a girl in an Internet chat room and talked about various topics including sexual relations. I flew over to Kaua'i and met her and engaged in sexual relations."

Tong said outside of the courtroom that the charge to which Cabrera pleaded guilty was "inducing a minor to engage in sex for the purpose of producing child pornography." He declined to say what Cabrera, who will be sentenced Dec. 16, intended to do with the videotape. Tong said the case began after Kaua'i police received a truancy tip regarding the girl who was spotted at a Kaua'i hotel with Cabrera. He said Cabrera had no prior criminal record.

Rick Bratt, a Customs Service senior special agent and computer forensics technicians, said after the court hearing that parents should monitor their children's use of computers.

"One of the best things they can do is take the computer out of the bedroom and put it in the living room which gives parents an opportunity to see what's going on," Bratt said.

"Any time there is a chat room with a title that says 'teenager' I would lay my paycheck on (sexual) predators being in there," Bratt said.

Failing to monitor home computer use by children is like giving them "the keys to the city," Bratt said. Parents can install various programs on the computer such as Net Nanny or Cyber Nanny to keep children from straying into unwanted areas, he said.

"It's not a cure all, but it helps," Bratt said.