Federal authorities believe a multimillion-dollar drug smuggling ring with ties to the Hells Angels used Snohomish County as a shipment hub to distribute thousands of pounds of marijuana and cocaine across the U.S. and Canada.
The drug traffickers allegedly trucked potent “B.C. Bud” marijuana in hollowed-out logs and stuffed into plastic drain pipes from Canada to places such as Arlington and Stanwood. The dope then was distributed as far away as New York and Maryland, where the street value of the Canadian weed doubles.
Federal authorities on Friday announced the arrest and indictment of the suspected kingpin, along with three Snohomish County residents suspected of drug trafficking. Nearly 40 people have been charged in connection the suspected drug ring.
During the three-year investigation, undercover officers seized about 1,300 pounds of cocaine, 7,000 pounds of marijuana and about $3.5 million. Almost a ton of marijuana, worth about $5.5 million, was found in a tractor trailer at a Stanwood weigh station in 2006.
“It was a very significant drug trafficking organization and likely will be dismantled as opposed to just being disrupted,” said Everett police Lt. Mark St. Clair with the Snohomish Regional Drug Task Force.
The case is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the task force.
Suspected leader Robert Shannon, 38, of British Columbia, was arrested Thursday, along with Devron Quast, 38, also of British Columbia.
The men were picked up after one final undercover operation that netted police hundreds of pounds of B.C. Bud and $50,000, federal authorities said.
Prosecutors believe Shannon was in charge of moving the drugs and money on behalf of the Hells Angels, according to the indictment filed in U.S. District Court in Seattle. Canadian marijuana was brought into the U.S. and cocaine smuggled by Mexican drug cartels went to Canada.
Investigators believe Quast oversaw the day-to-day transportation operations. He allegedly agreed to pay $425 for each pound of marijuana that was seized or lost during transportation into the U.S. Quast is believed to have been the general manager at a Hyundai dealership in Canada.
Three from county indicted
Three Snohomish County residents also were named in the indictment. Korrine Dogget, 42, of Arlington is accused of keeping a cargo trailer of marijuana on her property. Chance Gerrior, 42, of Arlington allegedly stored and unloaded marijuana. Todd Gabriel, 41, of Everett is accused of delivering loads of marijuana in Western Washington and California.
Gabriel and Gerrior are wanted by police on federal warrants.
Authorities don’t believe the three were involved in distributing cocaine.
So far, nearly 20 people from Snohomish and Island counties have been charged in connection with the drug smuggling operations, said special assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Cornell.
Cornell also is a Snohomish County deputy prosecutor assigned to prosecute drug cases in federal court.
“This is an unbelievably sophisticated smuggling operation and it went on for years,” Cornell said.
Drugs were moved across the border in hidden compartments, including false walls in cargo containers and inside propane tanks. Some loads were hand-carried across the border.
On a fluke, about 1,700 packages of marijuana sandwiched between plastic drain pipes were discovered two years ago in Stanwood.
The truck stopped for a safety inspection at the weigh station on I-5 and was found to have brake problems. The driver parked the tractor rig in the station lot. A short time later, another delivery truck with brake problems parked next to the trailer. A Washington State Patrol trooper found marijuana in the pocket of one of the passengers of the delivery truck. A drug sniffing dog searched the delivery truck for more drugs and took a sudden interest in the neighboring trailer. Police searched the trailer and discovered the dope hidden in 15-foot-long pipes.
Well-known pipeline
Police long have known that Snohomish County is a stop along the drug pipeline between Canada and Mexico. Cocaine and marijuana are being swapped. Large drug loads destined for markets beyond the Puget Sound area are broken up into smaller bundles and moved east on I-90 and U.S. 2.
In February 2005, federal agents busted a man driving along U.S. 2 in Monroe with 372 pounds of cocaine in the back of his vehicle. The $34 million bust was one of the biggest in state history.
In recent years drug experts have noticed a new trend among organized drug rings. More are setting up shop locally. Traffickers with ties to the Canadian drug trade are operating hundreds of sophisticated indoor marijuana farms in Washington. Police have seen an increase in violence associated with the operations.
Two people were shot to death last year inside an Everett grow operation. Police believe the victims were paid to tend the marijuana plants for a larger organization.
Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.
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