Seattle – U.S. Attorney Nick Brown today congratulated law enforcement partners and members of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for its work being named the outstanding OCDETF investigation in the eleven district Pacific Northwest region. The investigation and prosecution of drug ring leader Bradley Woolard and his co-conspirators was named the top 2022 investigation in the region comprising Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Nevada, Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Northern and Eastern Districts of California.
The drug ring distributed fentanyl pills in Snohomish, Skagit, and Whatcom counties. The ringleader, Woolard, 42, of Arlington, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for his conviction on 28 counts involving conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, conspiracy to commit money laundering, money laundering, illegal gun possession, and possessing drugs with the intent to distribute them. Co-defendants, Anthony Pelayo, 34, of Marysville, was sentenced to 15 years in prison, and a $150,000 fine and Jerome Isham, 40, of Everett, was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
The OCDETF Award recognizes the investigative agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF), the U.S. Marshals Service, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) and the Lynnwood Police Department, Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office, and Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Karyn Johnson and Mike Lang led a team of 13 attorneys and support staff who worked on the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The award, the highest given by the program, is intended to recognize the law enforcement team for its “extraordinary achievement of the disruption/dismantlement of a major criminal organization/network.”