Hawai‘i Island Man Arrested and Charged in Ongoing Sexual Assault Investigation

𝑪𝑶𝑹𝑹𝑬𝑪𝑻𝑰𝑶𝑵: 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒂 𝒓𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒖𝒑𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝑹𝒂𝒚𝒏𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝑲𝒂𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒊 𝑪𝒉𝒐𝒏𝒈. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒓𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒐𝒏 27𝒕𝒉 𝑨𝒗𝒆., 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒕 𝒊𝒔 18𝒕𝒉 𝑨𝒗𝒆. 𝑾𝒆 𝒂𝒑𝒐𝒍𝒐𝒈𝒊𝒛𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒇𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏.

Hawai‘i Island police have arrested and charged 26-year-old Raynard Kalani Chong of Kea‘au in connection with an ongoing sexual assault investigation involving two minor females in the Puna District.

The investigation began on July 1, 2025, when South Hilo patrol officers responded to a report made at Hilo Benioff Medical Center. It was reported that Chong had sexual contact with the minors on multiple occasions, beginning in December 2024. The reported incidents occurred at various locations, including Chong’s residence in the Hawaiian Paradise Park subdivision, in the area of the 15-1700 block of 18th Avenue.

Detectives with the Area I Juvenile Aid Section continued the investigation and obtained search warrants for Chong’s residence, as well as a warrant for his arrest.

On Monday, July 21, 2025, Chong was arrested without incident at the Hilo Police Station on the strength of the arrest warrant. Following conferral with the Hawai‘i County Prosecutor’s Office, Chong was charged the following day with:

• Two counts of first-degree sexual assault
• Two counts of promoting pornography for minors

Bail was initially set at $540,000.

On Wednesday, July 23, 2025, the case was presented to a grand jury, which returned an indictment that included an additional offense of continuous sexual assault of a minor under the age of 14. As a result, a grand jury warrant was issued, increasing Chong’s bail to $815,000.

Police ask anyone who may have additional information regarding this case to contact Detective Paul Mangus of the Area I Juvenile Aid Section at (808) 961-8839 or via email at Paul.Mangus@hawaiipolice.gov.

Tipsters who prefer to remain anonymous may call Crime Stoppers at (808) 961-8300. They may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000. Crime Stoppers is a volunteer program run by community members who want to help keep Hawai‘i Island safe. Crime Stoppers does not record calls or subscribe to caller ID. All tips are kept strictly confidential.