WAILUKU, Maui — A 44-year-old Kahului man was sentenced today to 20 years in prison in a case that involved the largest drug seizure in Maui history.

Police recovered 18.5 pounds of cocaine and 6 pounds of crystal methamphetamine worth an estimated $1.5 million when they raided Patrick Aniban's South Pu'unene Avenue home on Jan. 19, 2007. Officers recovered $114,000 in cash hidden in a safe that had been built into the concrete floor of the garage and also found an ounce of marijuana.

Aniban pleaded no contest in June to 10 charges, including criminal conspiracy and first-degree methamphetamine trafficking. Maui Circuit Court Judge Joseph Cardoza sentenced Aniban to concurrent terms and set a four-year mandatory minimum he must serve before being eligible for parole.

Aniban's wife, Ohia, 34, was charged with similar crimes and is negotiating a plea agreement with prosecutors, according to attorneys involved in the case.

The cocaine and crystal meth were found in plastic jugs of Folgers coffee and creatine, a nutritional supplement, sitting on a shelf in a storage area attached to the residence, according to police. A further search uncovered five more creatine jugs containing drugs and three large heat-sealed plastic bags holding crystal meth stashed in the trunk of a 1965 red Volkswagen Karmann Ghia parked in the garage and covered by a tarp.

A co-defendant in the case, Matthew Otterson, 36, of Makawao, told police he had gone to California and Las Vegas with Aniban in November 2006, taking a large amount of cash in carry-on bags.

Otterson said Aniban bought cocaine and crystal methamphetamine during the trip and packed it in the plastic jugs, which were resealed and brought back to Maui in checked luggage.

Because he cooperated with the investigation, Otterson was allowed to plead no contest to reduced charges. He was sentenced last week to a suspended one-year jail term and five years' probation.

A fourth defendant, Wallace Koga, 58, of Kula, is awaiting sentencing for his role in the drug ring.