Honolulu Police Department Faces Lawsuit Over Alleged Leak Of Teen Sexual Assault Details By Top Commander

The Honolulu Police Department faces a lawsuit after Assistant Chief Ryan Nishibun allegedly leaked a victim's private information, leading to social media bullying.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 19, 2026, 5:44 AM EDT

Source: Information for this report was sourced from Hawaii News Now

Internal Information Leak And Social Media Spread

The Honolulu Police Department is embroiled in a growing controversy involving the alleged unauthorized disclosure of a minor’s private data. According to reports from HNN Investigates, a high-ranking commander allegedly took a screenshot of an internal alert regarding a teenage sexual assault case and shared it with an acquaintance. This image, which contained explicit details of the assault and identifying information about the victim, was subsequently leaked onto various social media platforms. The family’s attorney, Michael Green, has described the breach of confidentiality as "outrageous," noting that once the information hit the public domain, it was shared and reposted dozens of times.

Identification Of The Involved HPD Official

The officer at the center of the investigation has been identified as Assistant Chief Ryan Nishibun. At the time of the alleged incident, Nishibun was serving as the Acting Deputy Chief, making him the third-highest-ranking official within the department. Following the discovery of the leak, Nishibun was removed from his acting deputy role and returned to his previous rank of assistant chief. Despite this administrative shift, he remains in a position of significant authority, a fact that the victim’s family has publicly questioned. The department has confirmed that an internal administrative investigation is currently active but has declined to provide further specifics.

The Impact On The Victim And Family

The victim’s parents, who have chosen to remain anonymous to protect their daughter’s identity, spoke about the devastating secondary trauma caused by the leak. They noted that while the initial assault was a life-altering event, the public exposure "exacerbated it by 1,000 times." Following the social media spread, the teenager became the target of bullying, leading to a "sharp turn" in her mental health and social well-being. The father emphasized that the family has had to seek professional therapy for the first time to help the minor manage the dual burden of the assault and the breach of her privacy by the very institution meant to protect her.