The Kane'ohe minister accused of molesting an underage female member of his ministry is also under investigation by detectives in Portland, Ore., for conspiring to assist "numerous adult men committing sex assaults against children" in a ministry there, a Honolulu police detective testified this afternoon.

The testimony, from HPD detective Elizabeth Merrill, came during a hearing on Manuel "Memo" Taboada's request for release from prison pending trial in the sex assault case here.

Merrill said she was informed of the Oregon investigation by two Portland police detectives.

Taboada headed a Portland religious group in the 1990s called "Messengers of the Cross" until moving to Hawai'i in 1999 and organizing a ministry on Windward O'ahu called "Back to the Cross," according to Merrill.

He's accused of sexually assaulting the daughter of a worshiper who followed Taboada from the Pacific Northwest to Hawai'i in 1999. The assaults allegedly occurred from the time the victim was 11 to just before she reached 20 years of age, according to Merrill.

The detective said Taboada admitted his crimes first to one of his sons, then to four elders of his church during a meeting in "the parking lot of Safeway" and later to the entire congregation.

Defense attorney Michael Green questioned Merrill about details of those confessions, asking if Taboada had admitted only to "hugging and kissing" the complainant.

"He admitted he had done more than hugging and kissing," Merrill testified.

Taboada, 56, has denied the charges against him and is asking Circuit Judge Richard Pollock to grant him supervised release from prison pending trial.

Pollack scheduled an additional hearing on the motion for Friday.

Taboada has been in custody since July 21, unable to post $2 million bail.