Source: United States Attorneys General 6
A Hawaii man pleaded guilty yesterday to sexual abuse of inmates under his custody or control.
According to court documents, Mikael Rivera, 47, of Kapolei, was a correctional officer at the Federal Detention Center in Honolulu from approximately 2014 to 2018. While on duty as a correctional officer, Rivera committed multiple sexual acts with one inmate who did not consent and engaged in sexually abusive conduct with two additional inmates under his supervision.
Rivera pleaded guilty to six counts of sexual abuse of a ward. He is scheduled to be sentenced on July 3 and faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison on each count. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Supervisory Official Antoinette T. Bacon of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Ken Sorenson for the District of Hawaii, and Special Agent in Charge Zachary Shroyer of the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General (DOJ-OIG) Western Region made the announcement.
DOJ-OIG is investigating the case with assistance from the FBI.
Trial Attorney Nicole Lockhart of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section (PIN) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara Ayabe for the District of Hawaii are prosecuting the case, with substantial assistance from former PIN Deputy Chiefs Jennifer Clarke and Marco Palmieri.