Honolulu Man Involved in Trans-Pacific Drug Trafficking Organization Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison in Homeland Security Task Force Investigation

News Release, U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Hawaii, Thursday, September 10, 2026

HONOLULU – United States Attorney Ken Sorenson announced that Kennard Hinano Boyd Kekona, 58, of Honolulu, Hawaii, was sentenced yesterday in federal court by Senior United States District Judge Leslie E. Kobayashi to 120 months in prison followed by 5 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, fentanyl, and carfentanil, and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and carfentanil.  Kekona has been detained since his initial arrest in April 2024.

According to court records, Kekona was part of a conspiracy that was acquiring controlled substances through the U.S. mail and was engaged in the distribution of methamphetamine, fentanyl, and carfentanil on Oahu and elsewhere.  Kekona was held responsible for 2 kilograms of fentanyl and over 900 grams of methamphetamine.  

Carfentanil is used as a tranquilizing agent for elephants and other large mammals.  Carfentanil is approximately 100 times more potent than fentanyl, which can be lethal at the 2-milligram range, depending on route of administration and other factors.

Kekona is one of eleven defendants charged in three separate indictments for crimes related to the operation of a trans-Pacific drug trafficking network, ten of whom have pled guilty with one remaining awaiting trial.  The investigation yielded seizures of more than 150 pounds of methamphetamine, several kilograms of fentanyl and carfentanil, eight firearms, ammunition, and over $150,000 in cash.

Kekona is the seventh defendant of eleven to be sentenced.  Those charged in his and other related indictments have been sentenced as follows:

On April 30, 2025, Shawn Pauahi Santana was sentenced to 240 months’ imprisonment and 5 years’ supervised release after pleading guilty to conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and to distributing methamphetamine.

On December 10, 2025, Faith Michelle Nelson was sentenced to 151 months’ imprisonment and 5 years’ supervised release after pleading guilty to possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

On December 16, 2025, Francis Anthony Abergas, Jr. was sentenced to 210 months’ imprisonment and 5 years’ supervised release after pleading guilty to possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possessing a firearm and ammunition after having been previously convicted of a felony.

On January 8, 2026, Trish Leila Henderson was sentenced to 36 months’ imprisonment and 5 years’ supervised release after pleading guilty to possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

On January 12, 2026, Travis Kalani Hong-Ah Nee was sentenced to 78 months’ imprisonment and 5 years’ supervised release after pleading guilty to conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute carfentanil and possessing with intent to distribute carfentanil and possessing ammunition after having been previously convicted of a felony.

On January 29, 2026, Leonard Gutierrez was sentenced to 340 months’ imprisonment and 5 years’ supervised release after pleading guilty to conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, fentanyl, and carfentanil, nine counts of distribution of methamphetamine, and possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the Honolulu, Kauai, and Maui Police Departments, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Margaret C. Nammar is prosecuting the case.

This prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion.  The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad.  Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders.  In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children.  The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States.  HSTF Hawaii comprises agents and officers from ICE-HSI, FBI, ATF, CBP, CGIS, DCIS, DEA, DSS, IRS-CI, NCIS, USMS, USPIS, and HHIDTA, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Hawaii.