Two East Hawaiʻi Men Face Federal Fireworks Smuggling Hearing in Honolulu

An 18.5-ton fireworks seizure has pushed a federal smuggling case against two East Hawaiʻi men into a Honolulu courtroom, underscoring how illegal explosives can move from hidden supply chains into neighborhood streets across the Big Island.

Darrel Goo, 52, of Keaʻau, and Cy Tamura, 45, of Hilo, are scheduled to appear Monday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kenneth Mansfield. Both men remained free on $50,000 bail after their initial court appearance on Dec. 30, and the hearing was first set for Jan. 20, signaling a case that has already been moving through the federal system for months.

Federal prosecutors allege the conspiracy stretched from about May 2016 through August 2025, with Goo using fictitious names and Alaska addresses to hide annual purchases from a mainland fireworks company. Tamura is accused of helping move the shipments by falsely labeling them as horticultural materials. Investigators also say law enforcement quietly intercepted about two shipping containers of fireworks before they were sent to Hawaiʻi.

The search warrants executed in August 2025 reportedly uncovered the scale of the operation at both homes. At Goo’s residence, investigators say they found several firearms, thousands of rounds of ammunition, about $8,909 in cash, 36 M-type explosive devices including M-80s and M-100s, and 33 pallets of fireworks. Tamura’s residence allegedly held more than $40,000 in cash and three pallets of fireworks. Goo was also charged separately with being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition.

Prosecutors say Tamura told investigators the sales season ran from October through December and that helpers were paid between $20 and $50 per piece sold. That detail points to more than casual dealing; it suggests a recurring market built around holiday demand, with illegal fireworks flowing into communities on Hawaiʻi Island year after year.

The case comes as state and local officials have intensified enforcement after the deadly New Year’s Eve explosion in Salt Lake-Āliamanu on Oʻahu, which killed six people, including a 3-year-old boy, and injured about two dozen others. Gov. Josh Green signed two fireworks bills into law in 2025, while state and Honolulu police reported seizing nearly 61 tons of illegal fireworks on Oʻahu during late 2025 and early 2026 enforcement, along with five felony arrests and 29 citations.

For East Hawaiʻi, the hearing is a reminder that fireworks trafficking is not just a holiday nuisance. It is a public-safety pipeline tied to fires, injuries, gun violations, and the kind of stockpiles that can turn a residential neighborhood into a danger zone long before the first burst lights up the sky.