United States Drug Enforcement Administration

SEATTLE– Law enforcement fanned out to some 17 locations in Washington, Oregon, and California, on Wednesday February 4, 2026, making 14 arrests following a wiretap investigation of a drug and gun trafficking organization affiliated with the Black Gangster Disciples street gang, announced First Assistant United States Attorney Charles Neil Floyd.  Lead defendant Kevin Salgado, 27, of Puyallup, Washington, is alleged to have led the group distributing counterfeit oxycodone and Xanax pills, methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine. Some members of the drug trafficking group also conspired to possess firearms to further their drug distribution. Members of the group were heard on the wiretap talking about exchanging drugs for firearms.

“The defendants in this indictment allegedly engaged in a wide range of criminal conduct – pressing narcotic pills for distribution, trafficking firearms and switches to make them machine guns, using those guns to settle scores with rival gangsters,” said First Assistant United States Attorney Neil Floyd. “Ringleader Kevin Salgado allegedly distributed the pills he manufactured in western Washington and across the country through the mail. So far three overdose deaths have been connected to Salgado’s activity.”

“DEA will aggressively target anyone who traffics drugs, diverts controlled substances, or uses guns to fuel criminal activity,” said Robert A. Saccone, Special Agent in Charge, DEA Seattle Field Division. “This Tacoma street gang flooded our communities with fentanyl, meth, cocaine, and stolen prescription drugs while arming themselves with stolen firearms and Glock switches. DEA will continue working shoulder to shoulder with our federal, state, and local partners to dismantle violent drug trafficking organizations and hold those responsible accountable for the harm they inflict on our communities as we build a Fentanyl Free America and save American lives.”

“Together with our Homeland Security Task Force, we’ve struck a major blow against violent crime—dismantling a dangerous criminal enterprise and making our communities safer,” said Homeland Security Investigations Seattle acting Special Agent in Charge April Miller. “HSI is relentless in taking down transnational criminal organizations, seizing their drugs, removing their guns, cutting off their money, and bringing their members to justice. Protecting our neighborhoods from illicit activity remains our top priority.”

In addition to Salgado, these defendants are indicted in the case:

Haley Filler, 30, of Puyallup, Washington

Gabriel Tovar, 29, Puyallup, Washington

Kevin Andreas, 28, Puyallup, Washington

Joshua Bailey, 30, University Place, Washington

Tyson Latchie, 28, University Place, Washington

Kahlil Bland, 29, Tacoma

Ian Newman, 29, Yucaipa, California

Edgar Adrian Hernandez, 26, Yamhill, Oregon

Isaac Briones, 24, Sunnyside, Washington

Roman Jackson, 25, Lakewood, Washington

Geeneva Morandarte, 26, Lakewood, Washington

Christian Ericson, 26, Tacoma

Michelle Ford-Jackson, 50, Olympia, Washington

Each of the defendants had different involvement in the drug and gun conspiracy. For example, in March 2025, law enforcement executed a search warrant on the Auburn residence of Gabriel Tovar after seeing social media posts showing him holding high-powered firearms with extended magazines and machinegun conversion switches. Agents seized 11 firearms. Five of them were stolen. They also seized a total of 9 machinegun conversion devices.

Some of the defendants were involved in hacking into drug distribution companies and rerouting shipments of controlled substances so they could sell them on the streets. Searches of iCloud accounts and phones associated with members of the organization indicated Newman and Bland were diverting shipments to an address in Lynnwood, Washington, and later conspired to do the same in Florida.

And another of the defendants allegedly paid kickbacks to a pharmacist in Oregon for filling fake prescriptions for oxycodone and other narcotics. In June 2025, Isaac Briones was arrested in Davenport, Washington where he was picking up a fraudulent prescription of promethazine and codeine. 

In all, up until the searches Wednesday, law enforcement seized 38 firearms (nine of which had machinegun conversion devices) and seven were stolen firearms. A lengthy list of narcotics has been recovered including more than four kilograms of methamphetamine, more than two kilos of Phenazepam and seven kilograms of counterfeit oxycodone pills. 

On Wednesday alone law enforcement seized 39 firearms and more than 100 “Glock switches” – a part designed to turn a semi-automatic firearm into a machinegun. Law enforcement also seized approximately 887.9 grams of fentanyl pills; 924 grams of fentanyl powder, 355.3 grams of methamphetamine, 557.6 grams of cocaine; 3.5 kilograms of counterfeit oxycodone pills; 236.2 grams of oxycodone pills; and 268.8 grams of Xanax pills. 

“This operation and its results are a prime example of what’s possible when agencies collaborate,” said ATF Seattle Field Division Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Blais. “But this type of teamwork is not an anomaly. Every single day, ATF special agents and our law enforcement partners work tirelessly to prevent violent criminals from obtaining and using weapons that put lives at risk, and ATF will continue to work alongside our federal, state, and local partners to identify, investigate, and prosecute these offenders and their organizations.”

“Narcotics are destroying lives and devastating communities across the region. Every gram, every pill, and every sale of these drugs has the potential to ruin lives,” said Inspector in Charge Anthony Galetti, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Seattle Division. “Postal inspectors remain committed to working with our law enforcement partners to stop the flow of these deadly drugs through the mail and hold criminals who profit from poisoning our neighborhoods accountable.”

“It’s always a win to get illegal drugs and guns off our streets. Our friends and neighbors are safer today due to the extraordinary efforts of our agents and of our law enforcement partners,” said Special Agent in Charge Carrie Nordyke, IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Seattle Field Office. “We celebrate our success today, but we know that there’s much work to be done. Together, we are committed to making a continued difference by combatting drug trafficking and the violence that comes with it.”

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations.  A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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. 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. 

This investigation is being led by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with key participation by United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation (CI), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agents and Diversion Investigators, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Tacoma Police Department (TPD), Seattle Police Department (SPD).

During the investigation special assistance was provided by Department of State (DoS) Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), United States Marshal Service (USMS), Thurston County Sheriff’s Office, Spokane Police Department (SPD), Centralia Police Department (CPD), Northwest HIDTA.

On the day search and arrest warrants were served, these additional agencies provided support: Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS), United States Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID), Pierce County Sheriff’s Office, Washington State Patrol (WSP), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), San Bernardino County, California, Probation Department.