Alleged online predator charged

Ronald Young used the Internet to meet up with a teen girl to have sex, police say

Honolulu police have charged a 38-year-old Pauoa man who allegedly arranged to meet a 13-year-old girl to have sex.

Police arrested Ronald H. Young on Friday at Kahala Mall for electronic enticement of a child in the first degree. The crime is a Class B felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a $25,000 fine.

Young is the latest suspect netted by the Hawaii Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. The 13-year-old girl with whom he thought he was corresponding was actually an HPD detective, according to a news release from the state Department of Attorney General.

Young asked the "girl" to meet him at Kahala Mall, where he would pick her up and take her somewhere else to have sex, the release said. Police arrested Young at 9:10 a.m. Friday after he arrived at the designated meeting place.

The task force has a Web site at www.hicac.com to give parents, guardians and young people tips on how to recognize the dangers of the Internet and advise them of safety measures they can take.

The Web site also lets people know how to report suspected illegal Internet activity that targets children.

People can call investigators at 586-1240 on Oahu if they have information about possible Internet crimes against children.