A Hilo grand jury indicted a 39-year-old man Wednesday on felony theft and drug charges.
A Hilo grand jury indicted a 39-year-old man Wednesday on felony theft and drug charges.
The five-count indictment charges Donny Gorelangton, of no permanent address, with second-degree theft and two counts each of third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug and possession of drug paraphernalia.
The document accuses Gorelangton of stealing koa wood belonging to the state Department of Land and Natural Resources on April 11, 2015, and possessing methamphetamine, a smoking pipe and Ziploc bag.
A police spokeswoman said in an email Friday that Gorelangton was in possession of “a large section” of a koa tree when he was arrested at about 3:30 p.m. that date at the 12-mile marker on Saddle Road.
The spokeswoman said a search warrant was executed on Gorelangton’s truck two days later and 0.4 of a gram of methamphetamine was found.
She didn’t know the estimated value of the koa, but the indictment states it is more than $300.
The charges are all Class C felonies punishable by up to five years in prison.
Gorelangton is currently on four years probation on a drug paraphernalia conviction, according to court records. In return for his guilty plea, a drug possession charge was dropped.