Volunteer HPD officer pleads guilty for not reporting game room assault

A 37-year reserve officer of the Honolulu Police Department pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court Monday for not reporting an assault by an on-duty police officer and lying when FBI agents questioned him about it.

Joseph Becera, 77, faces a maximum 3-year prison term for failing to report and maximum five years for the lying when he is sentenced in October. He resigned from his volunteer position last year.

Nelson Tamayori, an active-duty HPD officer for the past 14 years, is scheduled on Wednesday to also plead guilty to failing to report the assault.

Another HPD officer, Vincent Morre pleaded guilty last month to two counts of using his police powers to deprive the constitutional rights of a person when he assaulted two patrons of an illegal gambling house last September. He faces maximum 10-year prison terms for each charge at sentencing in August.