On Monday, Feb. 6, 2023, King County Executive Dow Constantine and Undersheriff Jesse Anderson presented an update on significant busts made by the King County Sheriff’s Office, including in Burien last year.
As we previously reported, this huge drug bust – which concluded in late December – took over a year’s worth of hard work and investigation, when detectives in Precinct 4/Burien Police Special Emphasis Team made one final seizure in ‘Operation P-22.’
This was one of the agency’s largest seizures, and was also Narcotics Detection K9 Quinn’s first career operation.
Precinct 4 SET detectives conducted the operation with the assistance of other KCSO detectives from contract partners of Shoreline, SeaTac, Maple Valley, Metro, and TAC-30. Search warrants were served at multiple locations in King County, and the following was seized:
- 4.26 lbs fentanyl powder
- 5.7 lbs heroin
- 221.9 lbs of meth
- 68,181 M30 fentanyl pills
That’s enough fatal doses of fentanyl for the entire population of King County, according to police.
These numbers are staggering, yet they pale in comparison to the total narcotics located in the entirety of the operation, which amassed to:
- 25 lbs fentanyl powder
- 31 lbs heroin
- 8 lbs cocaine
- 400 lbs meth
- 478,000 fentanyl pills
- 5 handguns
- 3 rifles
Along with the narcotics and firearms, four cars were seized, $520,817 cash was confiscated, and 12 suspects were arrested (six of which were booked this week on subsequent narcotics charges).
“We’re incredibly proud of our detectives for the hundreds of hours they spent investigating, writing warrants, and working with prosecutors,” police said. “Our work on removing illegal narcotics and firearms from our communities won’t stop here though. While we see Operation P-22 as a success, tomorrow our team will be back preparing for the next operation.”
Police add:
“Our SET team knows every gun, and every fentanyl pill taken off the streets is a life saved. They, along with every deputy (human or dog) at KCSO are dedicated to enhancing the safety of our community and its members. Thank you for trusting us to do so.”
Total street value was estimated by police to be $17.5 million.
Crisis Cares Centers Levy
The press conference also served as a way to promote the county’s nine-year, $1.25 billion Crisis Cares Centers Levy, which will be on the April 25, 2023 ballot. The county says the levy would fund five regional centers – including a still-unspecified location in the south end – and expand the behavioral health workforce with apprenticeships, higher wages and other programs. It will cost taxpayers 14.5 cents per $1,000 in assessed property value, estimated to cost approximately $121 per year in 2024 for a median-priced home valued at $694,000.
Below is video of highlights from Monday morning’s presentation, as shot/edited by Scott Schaefer:
