DEA Archived Press Releases

Press Releases before January 20, 2025
29 Results - Showing 1 to 10
PRESS RELEASE

Five Indicted for Drug Trafficking in “The Jungle” and Seattle’s International District

SEATTLE – Five Seattle-area men are in custody following a grand jury indictment for their drug trafficking activity in Seattle’s homeless encampments and International District, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. The men are charged federally and have made their initial appearances over the last few days. “We are all...
PRESS RELEASE

Fourteen Indicted in Multi-State Drug Trafficking Conspiracy Linked to Deadly Fentanyl Distributed to Members of the Lummi Nation in Washington

SEATTLE – Law enforcement fanned out across the country and in western Washington yesterday arresting 17 people on indictments and criminal complaints for a multi- state drug trafficking conspiracy. The two-year investigation alleges that the trafficking ring has been linked to a fatal fentanyl overdose on the Lummi Nation reservation...
PRESS RELEASE

Former Kent Resident Sentenced to Prison for Selling Narcotics Near Drug Treatment Center

Seattle – A 37-year-old former Kent, Washington, resident was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 30 months in prison and three years of supervised release for selling narcotics near a drug treatment center. Mohamed Aweys Muse has been in custody since his arrest in March 2023. At...
PRESS RELEASE

Final Defendant Arrested in 41-Person Drug Trafficking Scheme Enters Guilty Plea

SEATTLE, Wash. – The final defendant of 41 arrested in an extensive drug trafficking investigation, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute and unlawfully possessing a firearm. Kendle Rashen Hawkins, 34, of Goodyear, Arizona, will be sentenced by U.S. District...
PRESS RELEASE

Man Caught with Nearly 100,000 Fentanyl Pills and Five Firearms Sentenced to More Than Six Years in Prison

TACOMA, Wash. – A 25-year-old Puyallup man, who also maintained an apartment in Seattle, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 78 months in prison for drug trafficking and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Emmanuel Xaiver...
PRESS RELEASE

First of Six-Member Drug Trafficking Ring Bringing Hundreds of Pounds of Narcotics to Western Washington Sentenced to 8.5 Years in Prison

SEATTLE, Wash. –The first of six defendants tied to a significant drug trafficking ring that used recreational vehicles to transport massive quantities of methamphetamine, fentanyl pills, cocaine and heroin was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 102 months in prison. Ernesto Casillas, 48, has been in custody...
PRESS RELEASE

Three Men Facing Federal Charges in Connection to Seizure of Meth and Thousands of Fentanyl Pills

Spokane, Washington- Vanessa R. Waldref, the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced today that three men are facing federal drug charges. Osvaldo Guadalupe Soto-Orduno, Jose Roman Lizarraga Gerardo, and Jose Efrain Gonzalez Rodriguez were charged by criminal complaint with Conspiracy to Distribute 400 Grams or More...
PRESS RELEASE

Year-Long Wiretap Investigation Results in Four Arrests and Kilogram Seizures of Fentanyl, Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Cocaine

SEATTLE – Law enforcement teams from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Seattle Police Department and IRS Criminal Investigation executed 24 search or arrest warrants taking four people into custody who are allegedly connected to a drug trafficking conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. The drug conspirators have ties to...
PRESS RELEASE

Thirteen People Indicted in Drug Trafficking Conspiracy Involving Fentanyl, Meth, and Cocaine

SEATTLE– Thirteen people indicted in a significant drug trafficking investigation are being sought by law enforcement with 10 of them in custody tonight, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. The defendants are named in three different indictments for a drug trafficking scheme. Two additional defendants were arrested today on criminal...
PRESS RELEASE

Central Oregon Drug Trafficker Sentenced to Federal Prison

PORTLAND, Ore.—A Central Oregon drug trafficker who conspired with others to traffic fentanyl and methamphetamine to Madras and Redmond, Oregon, and surrounding areas, was sentenced to federal prison today. Israel Sarabia, 30, of Culver, Oregon, was sentenced to 70 months in federal prison and five years’ supervised release. According to...