Hawai‘i Island man charged after reportedly found with dozens of fentanyl pills in Hilo warehouse
A Pepe‘ekeo man was taken into custody Tuesday after being found with 71.5 fentanyl pills in a Suisan Warehouse in Hilo.
According to Hawai‘i County Office of the Prosecuting Attorney, the amount of pills the suspect, later identified as Cody Lee Ranchez Araw, 31, had in his possession was equivalent to approximately 3,980 lethal doses of the synthetic opioid.
The pills, along with $505 and drug paraphernalia were discovered after Hawai‘i Police Department’s VICE officers executed narcotics search warrants at the warehouse.
At the time of his arrest, Araw had two other unrelated Circuit Court warrants.
Araw made his initial appearance in Hilo District Court on Friday afternoon. His bail was reduced over prosecutors’ objections and set at $100,000, and he was ordered to appear for a preliminary hearing on April 23.
The most serious offense Araw is facing is first-degree attempted promotion of a dangerous drug, a class A felony that carries up to a 20-year prison term if convicted or 10 years probation and up to two years in jail.
The 31-year-old was also charged with the following:
- Second-degree promotion of a dangerous drug
- Four counts of third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug
- Ownership or possession of ammunition prohibited
