A federal grand jury in Honolulu has returned a sweeping indictment against ten people accused of running a drug trafficking network that allegedly funneled large quantities of methamphetamine to Oahu. The indictment, unsealed May 6, 2026, charges the group with conspiring to distribute methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana, and includes at least one firearms count. Prosecutors say the crew used juveniles to stash narcotics and guns at a public housing complex, and that search warrants executed last week turned up a substantial cache of drugs and weapons.
Ten indicted in drug trafficking conspiracies in Homeland Security Task Force investigation https://x.com/i/status/2052536919448314162
— US Attorney Hawaii (@usao_hi) May 7, 2026
Indictment names and charges
The indictment names ten defendants: Navy Kapeli, a/k/a "Tiny" or "Unc"; Joshua Militante-Hanamaikai, a/k/a "Sparx"; Samuel Kaolulo; Dallas Jardine; Kenneth Taylor; Alabanza Tuimalealiifano, a/k/a "Insane"; Kaylam Kumos; Oriana Holmes; Taiana Kapeli; and Douglas Keliikuli. Many of them are charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana. Jardine also faces a separate count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking offense. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeannette Graviss is prosecuting the case, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Hawaii.
Why the Homeland Security Task Force stepped in
The case is being brought under the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative, a whole-of-government partnership created to go after transnational criminal organizations, cartels and smuggling networks. Executive Order 14159 set up the HSTF structure and directs federal, state and local agencies to coordinate investigations and prosecutions under that umbrella, according to The White House.
Prison smuggling allegation
Prosecutors say the indictment also outlines a separate smuggling conspiracy tied to the Halawa Correctional Facility. In that alleged scheme, inmate Alabanza Tuimalealiifano is accused of arranging for Kapeli to pick up a pound of methamphetamine and deliver it to Keliikuli, identified as an on-duty guard at Halawa, who then brought the drugs into the prison where investigators later recovered them. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, search warrants executed on May 6 turned up at least twenty pounds of methamphetamine and several firearms at multiple locations, including storage linked to the Puuwai Momi housing complex.
The investigation drew in a long list of agencies: the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, IRS-Criminal Investigation, Naval Criminal Investigative Service, Coast Guard Investigative Service, United States Postal Inspection Service, Honolulu Police Department and the Hawaii Department of Law Enforcement all participated in the probe, according to federal officials.
Legal implications
If convicted, the defendants face stiff federal mandatory penalties. Certain drug-conspiracy charges carry mandatory minimum prison terms that start at 10 years, and a firearm conviction tied to a drug-trafficking offense would add mandatory consecutive time on top of that. Those sentencing rules are set out in federal law, including the drug statute summarized by the Legal Information Institute and the firearms penalty provision outlined by the U.S. Sentencing Commission.
All charges are allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they are proven guilty in court. The case remains pending in federal court in Honolulu, and prosecutors have publicly released the charging details in their press materials.
