Kona Man Sentenced in Meth Distribution Case

A 33-year-old Kailua-Kona man was sentenced by Senior United States District Judge Alan C. Kay Monday to 155 months of prison time for three counts of methamphetamine distribution.

Lotoaiki Laulea was found guilty by a federal jury of the three charges this past August after a five-day trial.

United States Attorney for the District of Hawai’i Florence T. Nakakuni said that evidence presented during the trial showed that Laulea knowingly distributed a total of 484 grams of pure crystal methamphetamine. The distribution happened over the course of three drug transactions conducted in Kailua-Kona in August 2013.

An investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, along with assistance from the Hawai’i Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration, resulted in the charges against Laulea.

The prosecution in the case was handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Andrea Hattan and Mark Inciong.