Source: Office of United States Attorneys
Tacoma – A 66-year-old Tacoma man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 75 months in prison for his leadership role in a drug distribution ring tied to the white supremacist Aryan Family prison gang, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Ronnie Griffin is the stepfather of drug ring leader Jesse Bailey. The two were documented in multiple wiretapped phone calls discussing their distribution of dozens of pounds of methamphetamine and thousands of fentanyl pills. Griffin acted as a redistributor and confidant for Bailey and is documented as a member of the Peckerwoods prison gang. At the sentencing hearing Chief U.S. District Judge David G. Estudillo told Griffin, “You have a terrible history, there’s no doubt about it.”
According to records filed in the case, over a two-year investigation of the drug trafficking ring, agents seized an estimated 223 pounds of methamphetamine, an estimated 830,000 fentanyl pills, multiple-pound quantities of fentanyl powder, cocaine, heroin, and marijuana, $338,000 of suspected drug proceeds, and 48 firearms from members of the conspiracy. In addition, during the coordinated arrests of the DTO members in March 2023, law enforcement seized approximately 22 pounds of methamphetamine, 26 pounds of fentanyl in pill and powder form, six pounds of heroin, more than $330,000 of suspected drug proceeds, and 177 additional firearms. Two of those firearms were seized from Griffin. They were found hidden in a toilet at his residence.
Asking for a ten-year sentence, prosecutors noted that Griffin has been in and out of prison most of his adult life, but shorter sentences do not seem to have deterred his criminal conduct. “This history includes convictions for theft, obstructing a public servant, possession of stolen property, forgery, possession of drugs and drug paraphernalia, attempting to elude police vehicles, unlawful possession of a weapon, identity theft, harassment, and fourth degree assault,” prosecutors wrote in their sentencing memo. In imposing the sentence, Judge Estudillo told Griffin, “You’ve been in front of a judge on many occasions…. I’m sure they’ve offered you assistance of some sort…. It is kind of scary someone in their 50’s doing something someone in their 30’s would do, like running from law enforcement.”
On August 1, 2024, Griffin pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances. He has been in custody at the Federal Detention Center at SeaTac since his arrest in March 2023.
Griffin is the sixth member of the drug ring to be sentenced. Some defendants have received prison sentences of as much at 13 years in prison. Less culpable defendants have been sentenced to 20-50 months in prison. Drug ringleader Jesse James Bailey pleaded guilty last month and is scheduled for sentencing on February 28, 2025.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
This investigation was led by the FBI with critical investigative teamwork from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Washington State Department of Corrections and significant local assistance from the Tacoma Police Department, Pierce County Sheriff’s Office, and the Thurston County Narcotics Task Force, led by the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office. Throughout this investigation the following agencies assisted the primary investigators: Washington State Patrol, Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine, Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, Lakewood Police Department, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS).
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Max Shiner and Zach Dillon.