A Waimānalo volleyball coach and firefighter arrested last year producing child pornography of a student has been charged in federal court.
Ken Sorenson, U.S. Attorney for the District of Hawai‘i, announced Friday afternoon that Elias David, a Waimānalo 37-year-old reportedly arrested in July 2024 for second-degree sexual assault, has been charged in U.S. District Court with producing child pornography.
According to a criminal complaint, the Honolulu Police Department was informed in July 2024 that the family of a then-17-year-old girl had discovered a sexual relationship between the girl and David, her volleyball coach.
The victim told an FBI special agent that David had been her coach since she was 13, and he had begun a sexual relationship with her when she was 16. She said the two would meet at the fire station where David worked and a warehouse next to the fire station.
HPD later found pictures in David’s work locker that appeared to be screenshots of a video of him and the victim having sex. That video, and about 30 others, were taken at David’s encouragement on her cell phone, the victim said — although she added that David had recorded some videos on his phone, but David’s wife had discovered them in 2023.
David told the special agent following his 2024 arrest that he and the victim had “fallen in love” while he had coached her, and that he had not made sexual advances on other minor students.
While state law places the age of consent at 16, federal law states that any sexually explicit photo or video of a person under the age of 18 is considered child pornography.
The charge carries a maximum possible sentence of 30 years in prison, and a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years.
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