A Maui police lieutenant is facing a federal charge alleging he accepted cash bribes and used his position to protect cockfight organizers and drug traffickers, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
Lt. Michael Vaituulala, a nearly 20-year veteran of the Maui Police Department, allegedly took regular cash payments from cockfighting organizers and ensured officers would not conduct enforcement at selected chicken fights, prosecutors said. He is also accused of accepting cash from drug trafficking suspects and providing them confidential information, including evidence photos, the identities of confidential sources and details about ongoing investigations.
Maui police lieutenant accused of protecting cockfights
Vaituulala, who had been serving as commander of MPD’s Criminal Intelligence Unit before being placed on administrative leave, appeared Thursday morning in U.S. District Court in Honolulu. Wearing a white jumpsuit, he kept his head down as he crossed the courtroom, which was crowded with reporters, attorneys and several people who appeared to be family members.
He is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud. His attorney, Gary Singh, told the court they had received the criminal complaint and that Vaituulala understood the allegation.
Judge Rom Trader said Vaituulala could not enter a plea Thursday and scheduled a detention hearing for Tuesday to consider prosecutors’ motion to detain him pending trial.
Prosecutors argue Vaituulala poses a serious risk of obstructing justice. Court filings state that immediately before his arrest he deleted his Instagram account, a platform investigators say was a primary channel of communication with alleged coconspirators. He told FBI agents he had a “feeling” about what was coming, according to the documents.
“The defendant has demonstrated that, even as a law enforcement officer, his loyalties lie not with the Maui Police Department, the pursuit of justice, or the community he owed a duty to protect, but with the drug traffickers and other criminals he shielded from prosecution,” prosecutors wrote in their motion to detain.
According to federal authorities, Vaituulala regularly met with cockfight organizers to go over logistics and conditions for events, and he signed off on the details. Prosecutors also allege he tipped off drug trafficking suspects about a sealed federal wiretap and a sealed arrest warrant.
A cooperating source quoted in the complaint said Vaituulala aspired to become the “Larry Mehau of Maui,” referencing the former Hawaiʻi figure often described as the “godfather” of organized crime. Mehau, a former Big Island police officer who died in 2015, was never charged with a crime.
Thursday’s initial appearance lasted less than five minutes. As he was led out through a side door, Vaituulala briefly looked toward family members seated in the gallery. One woman told him, “Stay strong,” and he nodded. Family members and his attorney declined to comment outside the courtroom.
Judge Trader set a preliminary hearing for Aug. 27. Vaituulala is being held at the Honolulu Federal Detention Center.
In a statement, the Maui Police Department said it is cooperating with federal law enforcement and acknowledged that allegations of criminal conduct by an officer can erode public confidence. The department said that, if proven true, the conduct would represent a betrayal of the oath sworn by its members and undermine the dedication of officers who uphold that oath daily.
