Couple arrested, charged after arriving at Kona airport with more than 60 grams of fentanyl

A Big Island couple is facing charges after they were found to be carrying fentanyl upon arriving at the airport in Kona.

Kona couple 41-year-old Izaiah Matthew Shields and 37-year-old Moriah Goulette were arrested Dec. 29 at Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport and subsequently charged.

Shields was charged with first-degree promoting a dangerous drug and second-degree attempted promoting a dangerous drug. He appeared Wednesday in Kona District Court, where his bail was maintained at $75,000. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for Thursday.

Goulette was charged with third-degree promoting a dangerous drug. She made her initial court appearance Tuesday in Kona District Court. Following a preliminary hearing on Wednesday, the court maintained her bail at $10,000. She was ordered to appear for arraignment Jan. 12 in Kona Circuit Court.

According to police reports, VICE officers contacted Shields and Goulette at the Kona airport after they disembarked a flight from California. Officers later recovered more than 60 grams of fentanyl powder from Shields’ person and more than 4 grams of fentanyl powder from inside an aluminum water bottle Goulette had in her possession.

First-degree promoting a dangerous drug is a Class A felony punishable by 20 year in prison or 10 years probation and up to 2 years in jail. Third-degree promoting a dangerous drug is a Class C felony punishable by 5 years in prison or 4 years probation and up to 12 months in jail.

The felony drug investigation was led by Officer Bradley Llanes with the Hawai‘i Police Department Area II VICE Section. The case is being prosecuted by Hawai‘i County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Kaua Jackson.