By Jacob Nakamura
Raymond Mantanona, the new vice chairman of the Peace Officers Standards and Training (POST) Commission whose daughter accused him of raping her repeatedly when she was a child, was not appointed to the commission by Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero, according to her spokesman.
"He was nominated by a member [of the POST Commission] and voted unanimously by POST representatives," Krystal Paco-San Agustin told Kandit.
Neither did Mr. Mantanona become a member by gubernatorial appointment; nor did any of his member colleagues on the POST Commission, who elected him the number two guy there.
According to the commission's enabling statute, the members of the commission are the heads of the government's public safety agencies, or their designated representatives. Mantanona is the chief of the international airport's Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting Unit (ARFF).
"ARFF is a recognized member of the POST commission," Ms. Paco-San Agustin said. "We can confirm that those actions were that of the POST Commission."
This means the people who elected Mantanona to have power over the establishment of hiring, training, retention, and ethics standards of police and peace officers were his peers in public safety. They all are aware of his daughter's allegations of rape against him.
[The video below is of an interview with Rachel Mantanona that occurred in July 2020]
Less than a year ago, Rachel Mantanona, 26 and now living in Hawaii, publicly said her father - Raymond Mantanona - raped her repeatedly between the ages of 12 and 16. The last time he raped her was in 2010, according to her account. Back then, there was a statute of limitations on the rape of children.
In early 2020, Ms. Mantanona sought the assistance of the Hawaii Police Department in filing a criminal complaint against her father with the Guam Police Department. HPD prepared Case No. 20213375, and sent it to GPD, where it became Case No. 2020-18611.
On July 30, 2020, the GPD Domestic Assault Response Team contacted Ms. Mantanona and told her the case had been closed and nothing could be done because the statute of limitations had expired in her case.
But that's not true.
Mr. Mantanona was a government of Guam employee the entire time he is alleged to have raped his daughter. According to Ms. Mantanona, he has only grown more powerful within the airport fire division and has never had a break in service with GovGuam.
That means Mr. Mantanona still is criminally liable under §10.40 of Chapter 10, Title 8, Guam Code Annotated, which reads that despite the several clauses of the statutes of limitations, when a GovGuam employee is involved:
"[A] prosecution may be commenced against a public officer or employee or any person acting in complicity with such public officer or employee for any offense based upon misconduct in office by such public officer or employee at any time while such public officer or employee continues in public office or employment or within three (3) years thereafter."
The case was since forwarded to the Office of the Attorney General of Guam.
"No investigators from GPD or the AG have ever called me about my complaint," Ms. Mantanona updated Kandit today after learning of the POST Commission hiring of her father.
An administrative investigation against Mr. Mantanona began after his daughter's accusations became public. The result of that investigation has never been made public, and Mantanona continues to be the fire chief at the Guam international airport.
Ties to police corruption
The allegation against Mr. Mantanona by his daughter isn't the only mark the government is aware of against him. Raymond Mantanona is the brother of John "Boom" Mantanona, who is a federal defendant in a massive police corruption case by the U.S. Attorney.
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