(The Center Square) — A six-month, multi-agency operation targeting violent fugitives, gang activity, repeat offenders, firearms and narcotics has wrapped up across Eastern Washington, with law enforcement agencies reporting more than 293 fugitive arrests.
Operation Stampede ran from March 2 through Sept. 11, focusing on Spokane, Spokane Valley, Spokane County, Yakima and Yakima County.
The operation and related enforcement efforts resulted in more than 293 fugitives arrested, 336 warrants cleared, 55 firearms recovered, about $2.52 million seized and approximately 455 pounds of narcotics seized across the Eastern District of Washington, according to a press release.
Of those arrests, 88 involved gang members or gang associates, according to the agency.
In Spokane County and Spokane Valley, Operation Stampede resulted in 100 arrests and the seizure of 42 firearms.
The Yakima Valley also saw a focused enforcement effort. From May 3-8, the Yakima County Sheriff’s Office and Yakima Police Department conducted Operation Stampede: Yakima Surge, a weeklong initiative targeting violent fugitives, gang members and sex offenders. That effort resulted in 28 arrests.
For Alicia Tobin, executive director of Safe Yakima Valley, the connection between violent crime and the illicit drug market makes coordinated enforcement particularly important.
“I think it's fantastic when you look at violent crime, the core cause is the illicit drug market,” Tobin said in an interview with The Center Square.
“When you are doing these coordinated efforts, when they target violent criminals and illicit narcotic markets, it really disrupts the criminal ecosystem surrounding the drug market,” she said.
Tobin said drug trafficking can overlap with other forms of criminal activity, including firearms offenses, human trafficking and violent exploitation.
“Drug trafficking is directly connected to firearms, violent exploitation, human trafficking and increasing toxic drug supply, like contaminated fentanyl supply,” she said.
She also pointed to the connection between gang activity and human trafficking in Yakima County.
“When you look at Yakima County, youth are being sex trafficked and it is tied to the Norteño and Sureño gang violence in Yakima County,” Tobin said.
The U.S. Marshals Service said Operation Stampede also supported the Homeland Security Task Force mission through coordinated enforcement, intelligence sharing and investigative support involving transnational criminal activity.
Tobin said violent crime associated with drug markets can include disputes over territory and drug supply, retaliation and illegal firearms.
“So the more coordinated efforts we can do like this one, I applaud it,” she said. “We are truly making our streets safer, not just for the general population, but for the youth.”
She said arrests are only one part of the process.
“We have to arrest and prosecute these people, not just arresting,” Tobin said. “Then we will start to see a reduction in overdose deaths, reducing violent crimes, domestic violence and sex trafficking.”
U.S. Marshal for the Eastern District of Washington Craig Thayer credited the participating agencies for maintaining the operation over six months.
“Most multi-agency operations are much shorter than the six-month ‘Operation Stampede’ violent crime reduction timeline,” Thayer said in the release, recognizing the officers, prosecutors and analysts who worked the cases.
Spokane County Sheriff John Nowels said the operation demonstrated the importance of cooperation between agencies.
“In our region, we rely on partnerships to hold our most dangerous offenders accountable and bring them to justice,” Nowels said in the release.
Tobin said the behind-the-scenes investigative work can take months as agencies gather intelligence and obtain warrants before conducting coordinated enforcement operations.
She said Safe Yakima Valley also works with law enforcement when victims come forward. The organization is a mandatory reporter, she said, and cases involving potential victims are investigated by law enforcement.
Tobin said the work also extends beyond enforcement. She pointed to the DEA's upcoming National Prescription Drug Take Back Day in October, encouraging residents to dispose of unused medications rather than leaving them accessible in homes.
“When your surgery is over, discard them, get it off the street,” Tobin said. “Youth will start in mom and dad's medicine cabinet, then they go to the streets, so we need this off the streets.”
