Tacoma, Wash. — This story was originally published by mynorthwest.com.
Federal officials, Friday afternoon, announced the culmination of a months-long undercover drug and gun trafficking operation. The target was members of a Tacoma street gang affiliated with the Black Gangster Disciples street gang.
“We had a very successful operation. Managed to pull a lot of guns and drugs off the street, including Glock switches, about 150, I believe,” First Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd said.
The operation commenced in the fall of 2023. Agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the FBI, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) participated, and the operation was led by the Department of Homeland Security Investigations.
In 17 simultaneous takedowns, agents arrested 14 people who are now under federal indictment.
“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,” Floyd said. “The ringleader, Kevin Salgado, allegedly distributed pills he manufactured in western Washington and across the country through the mail. So far, three overdose deaths have been connected to this activity.”
Drugs seized could have caused half a million overdoses
Agents said getting these drugs off the street saves lives.
“The stadium down in Santa Ana probably holds 71,000 to 72,000 people, so multiply that by seven, that’s the number of people that could potentially have a fatal overdose,” Robert Saccone, DEA Special Agent in Charge, Seattle Field Division, said.
“Short-barreled rifles, AR-type pistols, AK-47s, shotguns, and fully automatic pistols,” Homeland Security Investigations, Special Agent in Charge April Miller, said.
This was an operation where agents used physical surveillance and wiretaps to gather evidence.
“DEA will aggressively target anyone who traffics drugs, diverts controlled substances, or who uses guns to fuel criminal activity,” Saccone said. “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 to work 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,” he continued.
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