HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A disgraced girls basketball coach was sentenced Thursday afternoon for committing sex crimes against underage girls and harassment involving his players.
Dwayne Yuen coached private club teams as well as teams at various public and private schools, including Punahou School.
In December 2024, Yuen pleaded guilty to 12 counts stemming from what federal prosecutors described as a course of criminal conduct against his players, all middle or high school girls, for nearly two decades.
The counts include sex trafficking, coercion and enticement, producing, receiving, and possessing child pornography, exploitation and harassment.
Several of Yuen’s victims were present for his sentencing in federal court. Before hearing his fate, one spoke in court while three others shared letters, read by their attorneys.
Grief and emotion filled the courtroom as they detailed the horrific sexual acts he did to them as teenagers, years of abuse, manipulation, and threats.
They called him a monster hiding in plain sight, and explained how his warm, welcoming charm turned to gifts and eventual threats on their lives if he didn’t get what he wanted.
In court, Yuen faced Judge Michael Seabright in a white jumpsuit with his ankles shackled and apologized.
But the judge called Yuen’s words shallow, and said he had a demented need for control.
“You caused lost youth, all done in the pursuit of power and sex,” he said.
In the end, Yuen was sentenced to a total of 405 months of incarceration, or 33.75 years, and supervision for the rest of his life, if he’s granted release.
Shawna-Lei Kuehu, one of his victims, said, “It was just a sigh of relief, you know, and kind of like, ‘finally,’ that feeling of him finally just getting what he deserved after all these years of silence and torture.”
She said the sentence was a step toward healing, allowing them to close a horrific chapter in their lives.
“It was a lot of happy tears and embracements of just being strong and recognizing that for us women that have gone through all of this,” Kuehu said.
Yuen must also pay $3,000 in restitution to one of his victims and register as a sex offender.
If he is granted supervised release, he will be prohibited from having any contact with children or the victims, and submit to searches and seizures of his electronic devices.
He is also banned from any place where children are present, including playgrounds and arcades.
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