Undercover Drug Investigation Results in Nearly 200 Arrests 11-20-01

HAWAII COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT
KONA VICE SECTION
LIEUTENANT ROBERT HICKCOX
PHONE: 326-4205
NOVEMBER 20, 2001

MEDIA RELEASE

A two-and-a-half-month undercover investigation by the Hawaii County Police Department and the federal Drug Enforcement Administration has resulted in nearly 200 drug-related arrests in West Hawaii.

The investigation was conducted by Kona Vice Section officers and agents from the DEA Mobile Enforcement Team (MET) from the Los Angeles Field Division.

The investigation resulted in the apprehension of 47 individuals in 187 separate drug-related arrests.

County and federal officers initiated 226 drug-related cases in the investigation, which began on September 5, 2001. As a result, they seized 288.03 grams of crystal methamphetamine, or “ice”; 103.92 grams of cocaine; 2.33 grams of heroin; and 185.65 grams of marijuana.

They also seized 12 vehicles, $6,477 in cash and two firearms — a .22-caliber handgun and a .22-caliber rifle.

Eleven members of the DEA’s special team arrived on the Big Island in early September, and the joint undercover operation got under way almost immediately. The operation focused on the illegal distribution of hard drugs — crystal methamphetamine; cocaine, including “crack” cocaine; and heroin — in West Hawaii and particularly in the Kona area.

Three of the defendants were arrested and charged under federal statutes. The rest of the cases will be forwarded to the Hawaii County Prosecutor’s Office for disposition.

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