Hawai‘i Island police unifying vice sections to more efficiently combat drugs

The Hawai‘i Island police has unified its East and West Hawai‘i vice sections to provide more efficient drug enforcement.

Chief Ben Moszkowicz said when he was hired in 2023, he saw the need to have one person oversee both sections to improve information sharing in real-time among vice officers, detectives and lieutenants.

“The boots on the street management will be much more efficient,” Moszkowicz said.

Twenty-year veteran Edwin Buyten, who has spent 15 years within the West Hawai‘i Vice section as an officer, detective and lieutenant, became the leader of the department’s unified drug enforcement on Feb. 1, in the newly created captain position.

Working under him is recently promoted Lt. Kelly Moniz, who leads the East Hawai‘i Vice section, and Lt. Erich Jackson, who heads the West Hawai‘i Vice section. These positions had been vacant for a year and nine months, respectively.

The lieutenants answer directly to Buyten, whereas before they answered to the chief.

Buyten said he plans to prioritize stopping drugs at the ports of entry so they can’t reach the community, where they do so much damage beyond just the users.

“Distributors are out to capitalize as it trickles down and affects the community,” Buyten said. “Say a non-violent (drug) user runs out of money, they might steal a checkbook from their grandma. They might shoplift. They might turn to violence with robberies.”

In 2024, Hawai‘i Island police recovered 563 grams of illicit fentanyl, arrested 50 individuals for fentanyl-related offenses and recovered 5,664 illicit fentanyl pills.

In January, there were three fentanyl-related arrests islandwide, with Hawai‘i Island police recovering 3.18 grams of illicit fentanyl and 24 fentanyl pills.

Just two milligrams of illicit fentanyl, equal to a couple grains of salt, is a lethal dose, according to the Drug Enforcement Agency. The 3.18 total grams of illicit fentanyl recovered by police in January was enough to kill 1,905 Hawai‘i Island residents.

The unification of the two vice sections was in the works for 18 months, Moszkowicz said.

Moving forward, with better technology and free flow of communication, Buyten said the department will connect the dots that much quicker in drug investigations, and everyone is motivated to do it.

Gary Yabuta, director for Hawai‘i’s High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Agency, said unifying the sections under one command is an outstanding strategy that will create a holistic approach and make investigative work better and more effective.

“There’s always been that divide between Area I (Hilo) and Area II (Kona), but drug traffickers aren’t just working islandwide, but statewide,” Yabuta said. “What we need is islandwide communication and intelligence gathering. You shouldn’t be concerned about jurisdiction on that.”

Yabuta added: “Capt. Buyten has a vision, has the leadership skills and knows the pulse of the community to curtail drugs in the community.”

In many cases, the two vice sections were investigating the same suspects, but didn’t know it. Moszkowicz recalled a particular case last year when officers started an investigation into a smoke shop in Hilo after receiving information they were selling illegal marijuana products.

Through the course of that investigation, Moszkowicz learned that the business opened a second location in West Hawai‘i.

Moszkowicz said undercover officers conducted multiple controlled purchases from both locations. The products were sent for lab analysis, which revealed THC levels ranging from 20-40% (far above the legal limit of 0.3%).

Two different search warrants were written for the different stores by different detectives in each area.

Then, the search warrants were reviewed by two different prosecutors and signed by two different judges and executed on Dec. 5, 2024. The warrants, Moszkowicz said, authorized search and seizure of different items for the two locations.

“It prevented us from collecting all the things we knew were illegal and improper to sell,” Moszkowicz said.

Buyten first got into vice 15 years ago, when it was the apex of ice and methamphetamine use on the Big Island. He worked his first stint in vice for 10 years. In 2021, Buyten returned to vice as the West Hawai‘i lieutenant to tackle the fentanyl epidemic.

During that four-year stint in Kona, Buyten said Hawai‘i Island police led the state in fentanyl recovery, with 60% of the synthetic drug being confiscated in West Hawai‘i.

Buyten also was influential in getting the Hawai‘i County Fentanyl Task Force off the ground, which partners with community, nonprofits, the police department and county in fighting the fentanyl crisis through education and making naloxone, a nasal spray that can reverse the effects of an overdose, more accessible.

“I also believe that because we attacked fentanyl so aggressively, the distributors redirected how they bring it into the state,” Buyten said. “I do believe fentanyl is still coming here and is an extreme danger to our community.”

Buyten left the West Hawaiʻi vice section nine months ago to become commander in Ka‘ū.

Moszkowicz said Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport is one of the main places in the state for smugglers to bring in fentanyl, a synthetic opioid. It has been found in luggage, on travelers, and in parcels shipped through the United States Postal Service.

“Fentanyl is a recent substance of concern but methamphetamine continues to be the number one priority,” the chief said.

Overdose deaths have steadily increased from 2021 to 2023, Moszkowicz said.

In 2021, there were 29 drug overdose deaths, with seven involving synthetic opioids like fentanyl and 18 involving methamphetamines.

In 2022, the number of overdose deaths rose to 35, with six involving synthetic opioids and 20 involving methamphetamines.

In 2023, Moszkowicz said the “provisional” data collected showed 38 drug overdose deaths, with seven involving synthetic opioids and 17 involving methamphetamines.

Hawaiʻi County Mayor Kimo Alameda, who also worked with the Fentanyl Task Force early in its inception, thinks having a captain to oversee the two vice sections is a great idea.

“I think the police department has done an excellent job, especially in enforcement and seizures,” Alameda said. “They’re very transparent and they are collaborative with the mayor’s office and nonprofits.”

Alameda said Buyten is a community advocate who knows the ins and outs of his role.

“His career has led him to this position,” the mayor said.