A months-long undercover effort was led by the Precinct Four Special Emphasis Team.
KIRKLAND, Wash. — A quiet apartment complex in Kirkland gave little indication of the international drug investigation that had been building for months.
When detectives from the King County Sheriff’s Office forced their way inside in October, they found almost no furniture. Instead, according to court documents, the unit held tightly packed, vacuum-sealed bricks containing pounds of methamphetamine, fentanyl powder and cocaine — a stash investigators say was part of a supply line stretching to Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel.
The raid was one of several search warrants executed across western Washington as part of “Operation Eastbound and Down,” a months-long undercover effort led by the sheriff’s office’s Precinct Four Special Emphasis Team, a small cadre of four narcotics detectives and a K-9 handler. Working largely out of public view, the team focuses exclusively on drug trafficking cases, surveilling suppliers and building cases that often involve international players.
“This bag here, if you were going to break it down by the gram, the street value is roughly ten thousand dollars,” one detective said, gesturing toward the seized narcotics during an interview. Like others involved in the operation, he spoke on the condition that his identity be concealed because of the sensitivity of his undercover work.
Investigators say the organization they targeted was responsible for moving large quantities of narcotics throughout King, Snohomish and Pierce counties. Two men, Anibal Fernando Galarza-Gutama and Ronald Marcelo Galarza-Galarza, are now in the Snohomish County Jail facing felony drug-trafficking charges after allegedly selling pounds of narcotics to undercover officers. One of them told detectives he “would re-up from his Mexico source,” according to charging documents.
“We don’t believe they had any indication they were being investigated,” the detective said. “It sends a good message to the people that are causing death and destruction in our communities that it doesn’t matter where you are or where it’s coming from. If you’re bringing drugs and poison into King County, we will come after you — and we did.”
The operation also spotlighted the evolving nature of the drug trade. Detectives say they have seized fewer fentanyl pills this year — about 70,000, compared with hundreds of thousands in previous years. But they are seeing more fentanyl powder and more methamphetamine. Prices for meth, they noted, have crept upward as supply and distribution patterns shift.
“What we have seen is the uptick in fentanyl powder,” the detective said. “We’re seeing a lot more powder, fewer pills, and more meth.” He added that multiple suspects arrested in related cases admitted they were working with cartel-connected suppliers.
Investigators describe the network as a “middle-of-the-road” operation. It's not the largest cartel pipeline operating in the region, but one with steady access to product coming from across the border. A regional provider based in Bridgeport, Wash., served as a distribution point, receiving more than 100 pounds of narcotics every few weeks before redistributing them to local sellers in the Puget Sound region.
The scale of the drug trade remains staggering. In 2024, Washington state recorded roughly 3,100 overdose deaths; about a third of them in King County. Detectives often use a grim analogy when describing the toll: “That’s like a commercial airliner crashing every month,” one said. “It speaks to us. We want to be a voice for the victims and their families, and we feel we need to do something.”
During the Kirkland raid, some of the hidden narcotics were located by K-9 Deputy Quinn, whose handler said the dog plays a critical role in establishing probable cause during searches.
“Canine Quinn is huge,” the detective said. “He helps us locate things that could be hidden and verify what we’re seeing. He’s a big part of this.”
In addition to Quinn, investigators used a handheld laser analyzer, a device that can instantly identify the chemical composition of suspected narcotics, to confirm the substances found inside the apartment.
While four suspects are now in custody, detectives say the case is far from over. They are continuing to work with federal partners as they trace the supply chain back to Mexico and expect more arrests as the investigation unfolds.
“We know that we need to stop the flow of drugs,” the detective said. “We can’t stand there and do nothing about it.”
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