A pair of Hawai‘i Island men were charged in federal court Monday for their alleged role in a years-long fireworks smuggling operation.
Darrel Goo, 52, of Kea‘au, and Cy Tamura, 45, of Hilo, were charged in U.S. District Court with transporting fireworks into Hawai‘i illegally, unlawful transport and storage of explosive materials, and trafficking explosives via interstate commerce. Goo, a convicted felon following a 1994 vehicle theft case, was also charged with being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition.
According to a criminal complaint, Goo had been in contact with Wisconsin-based fireworks wholesaler U.S. Mainland Fireworks Company between 2016 and 2025, arranging each year to bulk-purchase fireworks for as much as $131,000 at once.
To conceal his purchases, Goo allegedly would either pre-pay for the fireworks using multiple money orders through a series of proxies on the Big Island, or simply with cash. He also used the alias John Branco and random addresses in Alaska to further obfuscate his purchases.
The complaint claims that, in 2020, Goo — as “Branco” — ordered 588 cases of aerial fireworks for more than $51,000, which he paid for with 50 $1,000 money orders sent from various Big Island post office locations.
Meanwhile, the complaint states that Tamura would arrange for the transport of shipping containers to the island each year. While the containers would be labeled as containing horticultural materials such as horse hay or potting soil, they would contain the fireworks Goo ordered.
Naturally, the complaint also states that neither Goo nor Tamura had proper licenses to import or store fireworks.
The complaint also alleges that Goo, while traveling to Wisconsin to complete these transactions, would also stop over in Indiana or Kentucky to purchase “overload” fireworks — pyrotechnics containing more explosive material than consumer-grade fireworks.
Also included in the complaint is an affidavit by an IRS criminal investigation special agent, Shaun Morita, who claimed that an undercover investigation recorded Goo and Tamura’s interactions with the Mainland Fireworks Company in 2025. During this year’s transaction — for which Goo paid about $62,500 in cash — Goo told a Mainland Fireworks employee that their sales markup in Hawai‘i ranged between 600% and 1,000%.
In August, a U.S. magistrate judge issued a search warrant for Goo’s and Tamura’s residences, which turned up about 37,000 pounds of fireworks along with various firearms and more than $40,000 in cash. All of the fireworks tested were found to vastly exceed the explosive limits of consumer fireworks: the complaint states that some contained as much as 1,164 times the explosive limit.
“While we are in the early stages of this particular case, and those charged are presumed innocent, it is our intent to send the clear message that the safety of our local communities remains our number one priority,” said U.S. attorney Ken Sorenson in a statement. “Those who compromise that safety by violating federal laws related to commercial fireworks will find themselves facing justice in federal court.”
If convicted, Goo and Tamura each face up to 10 years’ imprisonment and fines as much as $250,000 per count. Goo also faces another 15 years for the gun charge.
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