Four individuals were brought before the U.S. District Court in Seattle this week to face charges related to drug trafficking. Their apprehension was the result of a comprehensive investigation conducted by multiple agencies, spearheaded by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). The operation also led to the confiscation of over 60,000 fentanyl pills and a substantial amount of fentanyl powder.
As per a DEA press release, undercover agents from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) posed as well-funded drug purchasers and arranged to buy kilos of fentanyl powder and pills. Elvin Irias-Escoto, a 22-year-old Renton resident originally from Honduras, agreed to supply the drugs. DEA Tacoma agents observed Irias-Escoto and his accomplices packing boxes, a backpack, and a cooler into a car at an apartment complex in Renton during surveillance. They then drove to a shopping center parking lot in the Bellingham area where they had scheduled to finalize the drug transaction. They presented the undercover agents with two boxes containing 15 packages of fentanyl powder, amounting to slightly more than 15 kilograms.
The press release further states that law enforcement officers seized a firearm from the car along with 60,000 fentanyl pills, another kilogram of fentanyl powder, and several boxes of ammunition from the Renton apartment.
In addition to Irias-Escoto, according to the press release, agents arrested Selvin Ponce-Maradiaga, 26; Sammy Maradiaga-Escoto, 20; and Hector Rosales-Martinez, 24 - all natives of Honduras residing in various locations within Washington state. All four men appeared in the U.S. District Court in Seattle on May 13.
U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman praised the swift action taken by federal and local law enforcement agencies saying: "This quick work by federal and local law enforcement will save lives with 16 kilos of fentanyl powder and tens of thousands of pills taken off the street. With deadly fentanyl overdoses occurring at a rate of two a day in King County alone, we are focused on getting as much fentanyl as we can off the streets and out of circulation."
The press release also mentions that multiple agencies collaborated on this case, including HSI, DEA, FBI, Skagit County Interlocal Drug Enforcement Unit, Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office, Customs and Border Protection Office of Field Operations, Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations, and U.S Border Patrol.
