A man accused of carrying large amounts of methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine and marijuana had the beginning of a preliminary hearing Tuesday in Kona District Court.
A man accused of carrying large amounts of methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine and marijuana had the beginning of a preliminary hearing Tuesday in Kona District Court.
Richard Castro, 52, of no permanent address, was spotted Friday afternoon driving a black Toyota pickup in Kailua-Kona, said Hawaii Police Department Officer John Balberde, who is assigned to the department’s vice division. Authorities had information that led them to think Benjamin Fleming, 50, of Captain Cook, was inside, he said, who was wanted for questioning in connection with another narcotics investigation.
Police followed the vehicle to where it parked near the front door of the Queen K Tesoro. Both suspects went inside and were met by officers as they left the store.
A K-9 search allegedly found narcotics in the vehicle, Balberde testified, and the sergeant saw a glass smoking pipe with white residue in a cup-holder ashtray.
Officers spoke with both men, who were arrested and taken to the police station.
“(Castro) was really worked up” during the trip to the station, Balberde said, about the muttering, rambling and other action he witnessed. Balberde said he tried to calm Castro down, telling him to stay calm, relax and breathe.
Police charged Castro with first-degree promotion of a dangerous drug, second-degree promotion of a dangerous drug, third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug, meth trafficking, possessing drug paraphernalia, illegal place to keep ammunition and ownership of ammunition prohibited.
Deputy Public Defender Wendy DeWeese asked if there was a physical altercation at the police station. Balberde initially said no, then altered his statement.
“If by trying to help him not hurt himself, yes, there was a physical altercation,” he said.
Balberde said they had difficulty getting Castro out of the squad car and preventing him from throwing himself to the ground while on a bench.
During the search of the vehicle, police reportedly found drugs and paraphernalia in four locations, Balberde said. The majority was found in a storage area under the rear fold-up seat of the truck. There, they said found a digital scale in a case, along with what they think were meth and heroin, he said.
According to a press release, police found 60.4 grams of suspected crystal methamphetamine, 15.5 grams of suspected cocaine, 14.5 grams of suspected heroin, 10.6 grams of suspected marijuana, paraphernalia associated with narcotics use and distribution, one unspent .32 caliber round and $4,174 in cash for forfeiture.
Searches of two bags in the vehicle also found similar drugs, Balberde said, and contained a checkbook in Fleming’s name.
Fleming was present for the hearing. He told West Hawaii Today that Castro asked him to come along to look at a truck and he had no knowledge of any drugs in the car.
As a convicted felon, Castro is not allowed to possess firearms nor ammunition.
The prosecution also planned to call Officer Kyle H. Hirayama, who was also involved in the arrest and the search of the truck. He was not available, and Deputy Prosecutor Kim Taniyama requested a continuance.
The judge granted the request. The hearing is slated to be continued at 10:30 a.m. Feb. 18 in the South Kohala courthouse in Waimea.
The case against Fleming, who is charged with third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug, third-degree promotion of a detrimental drug and possessing drug paraphernalia, continues separately.
Email Graham Milldrum at gmilldrum@westhawaiitoday.com.