Nanakuli on edge after sex assault of student outside gym

A teenage boy was reported kidnapped during a basketball game Friday and sexually assaulted by three men

A Nanakuli High and Intermediate School teenage boy was kidnapped during a basketball game Friday and sexually assaulted by three men, according to Honolulu police.

The student was standing outside the Nanakuli High School gym at 7:30 p.m. when he was forced into a white cargo van by an unknown male who approached him from behind, police said. Once in the van, he was tied up and sexually assaulted by three other men while being driven around the Waianae area for about an hour.

"When he was put into the van he was tied with those zip ties," said CrimeStoppers Coordinator Sgt. Kim Capllonch. "He didn't see any faces -- plus, he was scared at the time. It's not like he would make up the story. He was very traumatized."

The boy could not see anything inside the van because there were no windows, Capllonch said.

"He was traumatized ... he's not recalling," she said. "All we have at this time was that it was a white cargo van. What he did notice was that there was a dent and missing paint on the sliding door of the van."

Nanakuli Principal Levi Chang said the team was playing a game against Waianae High School that night, and that while they had a police officer posted inside the gym, like they usually do, they did not have any security outside.

"Maybe now we'll have to bring in some campus security and place them outside in the parking lot," Chang said. "We're trying to be very safety conscious, but something like this you never know."

Chang said he has met with the parents of the boy and said they do not want to make a public statement at this time.

"We will also be complying with their wishes," he said.

The incident is worrying parents.

Two of Nanakuli resident Margaret Copp's children have attended Nanakuli High School and her grandchildren and nieces and nephews are now in the public school system.

"He didn't see any faces -- plus, he was scared at the time." It's not like he would make up the story. He was very traumatized." Kim Capllonch CrimeStoppers coordinator, about the teenage sex assault victim

She said the attack has left her feeling uneasy, saying it is "definitely disconcerting."

"It kind of brings that to your backyard, which is really scary," she said. "The campus is left open and anybody can get in there even when everything is locked up. It's sad to say it's not a safe place for kids to be."

Waianae Coast Neighborhood Board member Frank Slocum said the sex offender registry could be used to track suspects, but emphasized the need to enforce registrants to verify their information as the law requires.

"What's the use of having it, if we're not going to enforce it," he said.

"What you do when you get a case like this in Nanakuli is ask, 'Is there anybody that did like crimes,'" he said, adding the case is very unusual.

Anyone with information on this case is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 955-8300 or by dialing *CRIME on a cellular phone.

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