Seattle police intensified efforts to curb drug trafficking with two arrests in areas notorious for open-air drug sales. Officers conducted patrols Tuesday in the Chinatown-International District and along the Aurora Avenue North corridor, both identified as narcotics hotspots.
According to the Seattle Police Department, officers spotted a 17-year-old distributing baggies containing a white, clear substance near 12th Avenue South and South King Street. Witnesses observed people immediately using the substances after buying them, including one man who paid with cash and a Styrofoam container meal.
Police arrested the teen and recovered 0.9 grams of fentanyl, 4.4 grams of meth, and $57 in cash. The teen, who initially claimed the money was “from Social Security,” was booked into the Judge Patricia H. Clark Children & Family Justice Center, as reported by KIRO7.
Later that day, at approximately 5:30 p.m., officers on bicycle patrol encountered a group in a parking lot along Aurora Avenue North. According to Seattle police, a 27-year-old man was seen holding a glass pipe with a hose. After detaining him, police asked the suspect to empty his clutch. A bag containing large shards of meth fell out.
The man claimed the drugs were fake, stating he “did not get high.” Officers searched his backpack and found a tin container filled with meth, a digital scale, and a large machete wrapped in an umbrella handle, according to KIRO7.
Although officers transported the man to the North Precinct, he was later released. The Seattle Police Department has not provided a statement explaining the release.
Both arrests highlight ongoing concerns around drug distribution in Seattle’s urban corridors. The Chinatown-International District is designated a “Stay Out of Drug Areas” (SODA) zone, where heightened law enforcement focuses on deterring illegal activity.
Police say the continued presence of weapons like machetes further underscores the link between narcotics and violence in these communities, according to Hoodline.
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