Gabriel Vasquez-Ruiz, Conspiracy to Distribute Controlled Substances, Washington 2022

SEATTLE – A high-level drug distributor has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in a major methamphetamine trafficking operation in Washington state, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Gabriel Vasquez-Ruiz, a 36-year-old resident of Bothell, Washington, was sentenced to 10 years in prison by U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour following a guilty plea in May 2022.

According to records filed in the case, Vasquez-Ruiz was a high-volume drug distributor who sold large quantities of methamphetamine to customers in the Seattle area. In early 2019, Vasquez-Ruiz sold over three pounds of methamphetamine to an undercover officer. In November 2020, intercepted conversations revealed that Vasquez-Ruiz agreed to trade a half kilo of cocaine for an SUV and ordered five pounds of methamphetamine.

The investigation, which was led by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Tacoma Residence Office, resulted in the seizure of over 247 pounds of methamphetamine, 35 pounds of heroin, 42,000 fentanyl pills, 24 firearms, and more than $625,000 in cash and bank accounts.

Vasquez-Ruiz pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances on May 3, 2022. In his plea agreement, he resolved both the federal charges and serious state charges related to his drug trafficking operation.

Prosecutors noted in their sentencing memo that Vasquez-Ruiz had been involved in drug dealing for many years and was a key player in a large transnational drug organization. “He did not simply sell small amounts of drugs to support his own habit. Rather, he worked alongside high-ranking members of a large transnational drug organization, selling significant quantities of drugs and at points supplying the organization with cocaine,” prosecutors wrote.

The case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation, which uses a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach to disrupt and dismantle high-level drug traffickers and transnational criminal organizations.

The investigation was conducted by a team of law enforcement agencies, including the DEA, Tahoma Narcotics Enforcement Team, Kent Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, SeaTac Police Department, Tacoma Police Department, Snohomish Regional Drug Task Force, Skagit County Sheriff’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Internal Revenue Service.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys C. Andrew Colasurdo and Amy Jaquette.

Vasquez-Ruiz was taken into custody on December 16, 2020, and has been in federal custody since then. He will serve five years of supervised release following his prison term.

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