RENTON, Wash. — This story was originally published on MyNorthwest.com.
A Renton resident was sentenced to 13 years in prison for his involvement in a drug trafficking ring that was connected to Aryan prison gangs.
This arrest stemmed from a two-year investigation, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, that led to the arrests of more than two dozen people. The coordinated takedown involved 10 SWAT teams and more than 350 law enforcement officers.
“On that day, law enforcement seized 177 firearms, more than 10 kilos of methamphetamine, 11 kilos of fentanyl pills and more than a kilo of fentanyl powder, three kilos of heroin and more than $330,000 in cash from 18 locations in Washington and Arizona,” the U.S. District Court in Tacoma stated during the sentencing. “Earlier in the investigation, law enforcement seized 830,000 fentanyl pills, 5.5 pounds of fentanyl powder, 223 pounds of methamphetamine, 3.5 pounds of heroin, 5 pounds of cocaine, $388,000 in cash and 48 firearms.”
The man, Shawn Ellis, 32, was sentenced by the U.S. District Court in Tacoma last Thursday.
Ellis was deemed a “prolific drug redistribution,” according to the U.S. District Court.
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Background of investigation into Renton drug dealer
Obtaining the drugs and selling them to customers for profit, Ellis would order as much as 30 pounds of methamphetamine at a time. When Ellis was arrested, agents recovered buckets of fentanyl and methamphetamine from his car, as well as cocaine and fake Xanax pills.
Ellis had four guns in the vehicle during the time of the search — a loaded pistol between the driver’s seat and center console, a second loaded pistol, an SK-15 rifle hidden in a violin case and a shotgun. Body armor was also seized during the vehicle search.
“The danger Ellis posed to the community does not stop,” prosecutors wrote to the court. “He carried guns in his car along with his drugs, including a pistol which he kept close at hand near the driver’s seat. Ellis also kept in the car a second pistol, a shotgun and an AR-15-type rifle. This rifle proved to be a machine gun that fires fully automatically. As a felon, Ellis could not legally possess any firearms, much less a silencer or a machine gun.”
Additionally, five other firearms were found in a storage shed Ellis controlled alongside a large amount of ammunition, additional body armor and a homemade silencer, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Ellis also stored cash, jewelry, precious metals, coins and other collectibles in the shed.
Ellis has two prior felony drug convictions, prohibiting him from possessing firearms.
The top-level leader of this drug trafficking ring, Jesse Bailey, is scheduled to be sentenced on June 13. His wife and co-conspirator, Candace Bailey, is scheduled for sentencing on May 16, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
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Frank Sumrall is a content editor at MyNorthwest and producer of the Seattle Seahawks podcast, The Reset with Gee Scott. You can read his stories here and you can email him here.
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