A 59-year-old man with a pending drug case in court is back in custody after a raid at his Hawaiian Paradise Park home turned up almost 2 ounces of a substance that tested positive for crystal methamphetamine.
Dennis Eugene Wheeler is charged with first- and second-degree promotion of a dangerous drug, two counts of third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug and four counts of possessing drug paraphernalia. According to court documents filed by police, officers executing a search warrant Tuesday seized 54.8 grams of suspected meth. The paraphernalia charges were for a digital scale, glass smoking pipes and zip-lock packets.
Wheeler’s bail was set at $135,000 and he made his initial court appearance Thursday.
Deputy Public Defender Isaac Ickes asked Hilo District Judge Harry Freitas to again free Wheeler on supervised release.
“He’s suffering now from a heart condition,” Ickes told the judge. “… He’s also informed me he’s working now at Paolo’s Bistro.”
Deputy Prosecutor Jared Auna urged the judge to keep Wheeler’s bail at the same dollar amount.
“These charges … are not just parallel to the earlier offenses (the) defendant is charged with, but the defendant was on supervised release on those charges,” Auna said. “He was granted supervised release … on Oct. 14, 2016. In that case, a warrant was executed. … What we have here today, a warrant was executed and what they did was find drugs in (the) same house, similar places as the first offense.”
On Oct. 7, officers searching Wheeler’s 32nd Avenue home netted 10.8 grams — more than 1/3 ounce — of a substance that tested positive for crystal methamphetamine, documents state. They also found a glass smoking pipe, a digital scale, zip-lock packets and a cut straw police said was used to loading narcotics into pipes.
Wheeler was charged with third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug, attempted first-degree promotion of a dangerous drug and two counts of possession of drug paraphernalia.
Freitas maintained Wheeler’s bail and set a preliminary hearing on the new charges for 2 p.m. Monday. Wheeler’s next hearing on the earlier charges is at 8 a.m. May 15 before Hilo Circuit Judge Greg Nakamura.
The most severe charge in each case is a Class A felony punishable by up to 20 years imprisonment.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
