Kona Man Sentenced for Seven Pounds of Methamphetamine

A 50-year-old Kona man was sentenced on Tuesday to 20 years in federal prison for conspiring to distribute more than seven pounds of methamphetamine.

Michael Sakuma had pleaded guilty to the charge in January.  During that court appearance he admitted to possessing more than seven pounds of meth which he said he intended to sell on the Big Island.

Sakuma was arrested immediately following the Nov. 15, 2011 execution of a search warrant at a warehouse on Hale Makai Place, located near the West Hawaii police headquarters in Kealakehe.

The meth was found in two safes concealed behind a wood shelving unit in an area of the warehouse where Sakuma lived.

According to court documents, an informant told police that he had observed Sakuma with a gallon-sized re-sealable plastic bag completely filled with meth, and other sources told police that Sakuma had told them that at times he possessed more than 17 pounds of the drug.

At a preliminary hearing in Kona in November 2011, police said that Sakuma had admitted selling between 10 and 12 pounds of the drug in a period of less than three months. Sakuma also admitted taking in an estimated $2.5 million in drug revenues in 2010.

During his sentencing in federal court on Tuesday in Honolulu, Sakuma was also ordered by Judge J. Michael Seabright to pay a $20,000 fine.

The case was investigated by the Hawaii Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration.