Aiea man pleads not guilty to charges of rape in 1996
LIHUE » Eugene Saulibio, the Aiea man who received a settlement from a Catholic priest who sexually assaulted him, pleaded not guilty to his own rape charges yesterday in Circuit Court.
Saulibio, a 44-year-old father of three, had little to say both in court and afterward, relying on his Honolulu attorney, Victor Bakke, to answer questions from the judge and the throng of media outside the courtroom.
Bakke entered a not-guilty plea for the
four first-degree sexual assault charges filed against his client, and received a Feb. 27 trial date.
His lawyer also said that the $80,000 bail Saulibio posted was a hardship on his family and requested a reduction. Judge George Masuoka ordered a bail study.
Saulibio was indicted on Nov. 21 for four counts of sexual assault, allegedly committing the "act of sexual penetration by strong compulsion" four times on a girl between July and August 1996, according to the indictment.
The girl, who was 14 at the time of the alleged incident, was on summer vacation from Oregon with a relative of Saulibio's and was staying at Saulibio's former home in Kalaheo, Kauai, police said.
After court yesterday, Bakke said the charges "came as a complete surprise" to his client.
Just three weeks ago, Saulibio stood outside Circuit Court in Honolulu after winning an apology and a court settlement from Rev. Joseph Bukoski III, the man who sexually assaulted him in 1976.
Bukoski was not yet a Catholic priest at the time of the sexual abuse, but had taken religious vows as a Sacred Hearts brother. Sacred Hearts also settled with Saulibio for an undisclosed sum and issued an apology. Saulibio was 15 years old at the time of the assault.
Bakke noted that the 23-year-old woman who is now accusing Saulibio of rape came forward after learning about the court settlement.
"We believe the complaining witness is aware of the settlement," Bakke said.
But prosecutors and police said the witness came forward well before the settlement, and the nine-month-long investigation had nothing to do with Saulibio's recent civil case.
"The timing had nothing to do with the settlement," Kauai prosecutor Craig De Costa said.
Bakke said Saulibio was "deeply distressed" by the charges. "We are going to fight (the charges) to the bitter end," Bakke said.