Final defendant arrested in 41-person drug trafficking scheme enters guilty plea

Press Release

Arizona resident brought more than four kilograms of fentanyl pills into Washington State for distribution

Seattle - 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, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Kendle Rashen Hawkins, 34, of Goodyear, Arizona, will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez on November 8, 2024. Because of the quantity of drugs involved, Hawkins faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison.

According to records filed in the case, Hawkins was identified as a participant in the drug trafficking ring who brought large quantities of controlled substances-which he concealed in compartments in rental vehicles-from Phoenix to Seattle. Law enforcement obtained a search warrant to track his cell phone and saw the phone traveling from Phoenix to Sacramento and then up Interstate 5 towards Seattle. Using the location data, investigators were able to locate Hawkins as he came into Washington State as a passenger in a car he rented. Agents had the car stopped for speeding in Lewis County. After a drug detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs in the car, agents obtained a warrant to search it. Inside the vehicle, they found about 50,000 fentanyl pills weighing more than 4.8 kilograms, five firearms, two silencers, and a high-capacity drum magazine. Each of the firearms was purchased in Arizona within the previous two weeks by a man later prosecuted in Arizona for dealing firearms without a license.

The arrest of Hawkins came midway through a larger investigation into drug trafficking in the Seattle region. This joint investigation by the FBI and the Seattle Police Department resulted in charges against 41 individuals, most of whom were arrested in a takedown in April 2021 or another in June 2021.

Over more than two years of the investigation, law enforcement seized 121 firearms, including stolen firearms and ghost guns; more than 16 kilograms of cocaine; more than 5.5 kilograms of fentanyl; nearly 1.5 kilograms of methamphetamine; and smaller quantities of heroin, MDMA, oxycodone, and other pills. Investigators also seized hundreds of marijuana plants from an illegal grow operation and hundreds of kilograms of marijuana that were being illegally processed and distributed.

In addition to the drugs, investigators seized nearly $1 million in cash that was proceeds from drug trafficking, a pill press used for manufacturing counterfeit pills, dozens of firearm magazines, and innumerable rounds of ammunition, and six sets of body armor.

The sentences for those indicted in this case range from time served to more than eight years in prison.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

The investigation was led by the FBI Safe Streets Task Force with key participation by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Seattle Police Gang and Narcotics Units, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Erin H. Becker and Lyndsie Schmalz.

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Updated August 2, 2024