Police have arrested a man who allegedly fondled three elderly women when he worked as a certified nursing assistant at Kahala Nui, an upscale East O'ahu retirement community.

Mark Genetiano, 24, of Kalihi, remained in police custody last night. He was arrested Wednesday for investigation of five counts of third-degree sexual assault. Charges were pending.

Two of the women are 92 and one is 89 years old. They were allegedly fondled by Genetiano in Kahala Nui's skilled nursing center, where they live, from May 1 to June 1, police said.

Kahala Nui said it fired Genetiano and reported the incident to police and to the state Department of Health. Kahala Nui administrators have reminded the staff of its policies and procedures in the event of abuse, CEO Pat Duarte said in a written statement.

"Kahala Nui values its residents and has a zero tolerance policy for any type of abuse," Duarte said. "Through an internal investigation, it was discovered that the individual in question had inappropriately touched three residents in our skilled nursing center."

The retirement community does perform background and criminal checks on all its employees, he said.

Kahala Nui offers multiple levels of care at its facility on Malia Street, which shares the campus with Star of the Sea School and Church. The 270-unit independent living facility has a 60-bed skilled nursing unit, a 20-bed memory support (Alzhei- mer's) unit and a 42-bed assisted-living unit.

John McDermott, state long-term-care ombudsman at the Executive Office on Aging, said of the abuse allegation: "If it's true, it's disgusting. Our seniors in long-term-care facilities are often chosen as targets because they cannot identify their attackers either because of memory problems or vision and their attackers know this.

"It's very tragic for our seniors who are so vulnerable."

Hawai'i law states that third-degree sexual assault involves sexual contact with a person who is mentally defective, mentally incapacitated or physically helpless.

A new law going into effect July 1 will require anyone who works in an adult residential care facility who suspects abuse to report it to the Adult Protective Services Division of the state Department of Human Services and to the state Department of Health, McDermott said.

Officials say possible signs of elder sexual abuse include torn clothing, bruising or vaginal bleeding or complaints of pain to private areas, soiled bedding, confusion or disorientation, extreme mood swings, fear of being left alone, reluctance to talk about anything, being silent for long periods of time, and no longer taking pleasure in activities once enjoyed.

"We want to make sure people report things immediately because witnesses may forget and evidence changes, bruises heal, a roommate may die or go to the hospital," he said. "It's critical that the Adult Protective Services gets involved immediately."