HAWAII
The Maui News
By LILA FUJIMOTO, Staff Writer
WAILUKU – Deacon Ron Gonsalves, who was placed on leave last month from his position as administrator of St. Ann parish in Waihee, has been indicted on 62 charges alleging he sexually abused a boy during a three-year period.
A Sept. 26 trial was set for the 68-year-old Wailuku resident, who was arraigned Thursday in 2nd Circuit Court. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
A bail hearing is scheduled today for Gonsalves, who was being held in lieu of $790,000 bail at the Maui Community Correctional Center. He was arrested Wednesday after turning himself in at the Wailuku Police Station.
The indictment alleges that the sexual abuse occurred over a three-year period, beginning when the boy was 12 years old and ending last month, said Lt. Glenn Cuomo of the Criminal Investigation Division. He said the sexual assaults allegedly occurred at Gonsalves’ home and at the Waihee church.
Cuomo discussed the indictment before Gonsalves appeared in court and Judge Joel August agreed to seal the indictment against Gonsalves, at the request of both Deputy Prosecutor Robert Rivera and defense attorney Philip Lowenthal.