United States Drug Enforcement Administration

SEATTLE – A 46-year-old Seattle man was sentenced late yesterday in U.S. District Court in Seattle to two years in prison for his role in a drug trafficking organization that sold cocaine and fentanyl in Seattle homeless encampments and in the Chinatown International District. Sang Su has been in custody since his arrest in August 2025. Su was heard on a wiretap investigation discussing cocaine distribution and obtaining ‘samples’ of fentanyl powder. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Tana Lin said, “It is aggravating that you were selling significant amounts of cocaine and fentanyl to some of the most marginalized members of our community.”

“Drug traffickers who distribute fentanyl and cocaine to vulnerable communities put lives at risk and fuel addiction, violence, and instability,” said Robert A. Saccone, Special Agent in Charge, DEA Seattle Field Division. “Sang Su’s role in this organization helped extend the reach of these dangerous drugs and threatened public safety. DEA remains committed to working alongside our federal partners through the Homeland Security Task Force to dismantle drug trafficking organizations, hold those responsible accountable, and protect our communities as we work toward a Fentanyl Free America.”

“Our goal with the Homeland Security Task Force is to remove dangerous criminals from our community – especially in neighborhoods that have been disproportionately victimized like the Chinatown International District.” said Acting U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd. “Whether you are a low-level distributor or a high-volume dealer, we will prosecute you. Mr. Su was a repeat offender selling drugs while armed and preying on the vulnerable population in the international district. He has earned his time in prison which will hopefully break his cycle of crime.” 

“As a redistributor, Mr. Su contributed to the high volumes of deadly and addictive drugs this drug trafficking organization poured into our most vulnerable communities,” said W. Mike Herrington, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Seattle field office. “He directly interacted with the group leader and further endangered the public by possessing a loaded firearm to protect the proceeds of the trafficking. The FBI and our partners will continue to hold each of these conspirators, and others like them, responsible for the damage they do to our communities.”

According to records filed in the case, in 2023, after incidents of drug trafficking-related violence in and around homeless encampments in Seattle’s Chinatown-International District and the greenbelt adjacent to Interstate-5, commonly known as the “Jungle,” the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) and the Seattle Police Department (“SPD”) began a narcotics trafficking investigation into individuals distributing controlled substances in these areas. 

On May 29, 2025, law enforcement executed 16 search warrants in Federal Way, Vancouver, Everett, Pacific, Tukwila, Kent, Issaquah, Seattle, Woodlake California and Beaverton, Oregon.  Investigators seized more than seven kilograms of cocaine, 18 kilograms of methamphetamine, more than 57,000 fentanyl pills, and 17 firearms. They also seized more than $353,000 in cash.

Sang Su was not arrested during the execution of the May 2025 warrants and was sought by law enforcement until his arrest on August 18, 2025.

Sang Su was initially contacted by law enforcement as part of the investigation in October 2024. Su had just made a drug purchase from the organization leader at a market on Beacon Hill in Seattle when he was stopped by law enforcement and the drugs and a firearm were seized from his car.

Su pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance on July 2, 2026.

In asking for a 30-month sentence, prosecutors noted that Su had ignored police interventions that could have put him on a better path writing, “However, between 2002 and 2025, Su had multiple contacts with law enforcement, which include multiple arrests for assault, controlled substances violations, and carrying loaded firearms. While these arrests were either later dismissed or charges were never filed, it is concerning the number of contacts that Su has had with the criminal justice system. Despite benefiting from charges never being filed or later being dismissed, these law enforcement interventions failed to curtail Su’s criminal acts.”

Judge Lin ordered Su to be on three years of supervised release following prison.

The investigation was led by the FBI, Seattle Police Department and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) with significant assistance from the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas program (HIDTA), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and Washington National Guard Counterdrug Program. Investigators also worked with the Oregon State Police and Clark County, Washington Sheriff’s Office.

This investigation is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Seattle comprises agents and officers from Homeland Security Investigations, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), The United States Marshals Service (USMS), the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI), the United States Secret Service (USSS), U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington. 

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