Two sentenced, another charged in crackdown on illegal fireworks

The Department of the Attorney General successfully prosecuted two men for selling illegal aerial fireworks in the community prior to the new year, following law enforcement sting operations to identify and arrest distributors of illegal fireworks.

Wolfgang Clark pled no contest this week and was granted a deferred plea to two counts of felony fireworks offenses, in violation of sections 132D-14 of the Hawaiʻi Revised Statutes. On Feb. 19, 2025, Daniel C. Young pled no contest and was granted a deferred plea to two counts of felony fireworks offenses, in violation of sections 132D-14 of the Hawaiʻi Revised Statutes.

A violation for each offense currently is a class C felony offense that carries up to five years imprisonment and a $10,000 fine. Both defendants were granted a deferred plea over the state’s objection, are required to pay a fine of $5,000, and will be under court supervision for four years. 

In addition to sting operations, the Illegal Fireworks Task Force is also working to interdict shipments of fireworks entering the state through Hawaiʻi’s ports. On March 11, 2025, Explicit Pyrotechnics, LLC., and its owner, Josephine Quintanilla, also known as Josephine Langas and Josephine Henderson, was charged with Importation of Fireworks Without a Valid License or Permit, a class C felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine. The requisite federal and state permits are required to import fireworks into the state. While in possession of a federal permit, Explicit Pyrotechnics, LLC., is alleged to have imported fireworks into the state without first obtaining a state permit. 

“The judgments in these cases are a step in the right direction for holding distributors accountable,” said Mike Lambert, director of the Department of Law Enforcement. “If we are able to increase the penalties for fireworks distributors this legislative session, the Department of Law Enforcement is confident that we can reduce the availability of fireworks in our community.”

The cases were investigated by the Illegal Fireworks Task Force, which included the Hawaiʻi Department of Law Enforcement and the Honolulu Police Department.  The cases are prosecuted by the Criminal Justice Division of the Department of the Attorney General.

“I want to extend my sincerest thanks to the law enforcement agencies involved in the Illegal Fireworks Task Force, as well as to my Criminal Justice Division staff, for all their hard work investigating these illegal operators and bringing them to justice,” said Attorney General Anne Lopez. “Together we will do everything in our power to enforce the law so that what happened on New Year’s Eve never happens again.”

Criminal defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.