KEALAKEKUA — A man who had as much as $72,000 in street drugs on him during his arrest as well as a loaded gun is now serving eight years in prison.
John Lopez, 41, Kailua-Kona, was charged with first-degree meth trafficking, driving on a suspended license, first-degree promotion of a dangerous drug, possession of drug paraphernalia, second-degree promotion of a detrimental drug and seven firearms counts.
He pleaded guilty to first-degree meth trafficking and possession of a firearm by a felon, with the remaining charges dismissed. He was sentenced Aug. 11 to up to 20 years with a minimum of eight years in prison.
He was arrested when police saw him driving a 2015 Toyota Tacoma on Highway 190 near the Makalei Fire Station on Sept. 1, 2015. When they searched his car they reportedly found 31.4 grams of meth, 29.4 grams of black tar heroin and 156.4 grams of marijuana. The street value was roughly between $25,233 and $72,153, primarily based on the quality of the marijuana.
The drugs were in several places, including 20 bags of heroin in the center console and 3.9 grams of meth in the glove box, according to evidence logs. Within a backpack in the passenger seat they found a pistol loaded with four 9mm rounds and a bag of marijuana. They also found two glass smoking pipes.
Police said they found 90 9mm rounds and 20 rounds of .30-.06 Winchester.
A key part of Lopez’s defense was a claim by a man in prison that he had borrowed the truck and left the drugs and weapons behind.
“(The man) spoke to police officers and gave a statement in which he stated he was a huge heroin addict. (The man,) the huge heroin addict, also told officers that he left the drugs in the Defendant’s truck. The state seeks introduction of this evidence to impeach the testimony of the Defendant, as it is uncommon for a huge heroin addict to leave a substantial amount of ‘his drug of choice’ behind,” wrote deputy prosecuting attorney Sheri Lawson.
The state also mentioned that the man was in prison on Aug. 30 and Sept. 1.
Lopez’s criminal history is extensive, according to filings.
He had a variety of petty misdemeanors and misdemeanors from 1993 to 2005, along with felony convictions for third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug, second-degree theft and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Lawson cited that the first-degree meth trafficking law included a minimum imprisonment of two to eight years. She asked for, and Judge Melvin Fujino granted, a full eight.
The meth trafficking law was eliminated in the last legislative session. Although still a felony with a 20 year sentence, it no longer has minimum prison time.