DEA: Deadly fentanyl money laundering ring tied to prominent Seattle area activist

(The Center Square) – A prominent Seattle area community activist and advocate for young people has pleaded not guilty in a federal indictment that accuses 17 people in several states – most of them in Washington – of taking part in a drug trafficking and money laundering scheme.

Matelita “Marty” Jackson, known for her activism and leadership position with Seattle’s Boys & Girls Clubs, is now facing charges that could put her away for life if convicted.

Other members of Jackson’s family, including her husband and children, are also named in the indictment unsealed last week.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office Western District of Washington, law enforcement last week fanned out across the country – including western Washington – arresting 17 people on indictments and criminal complaints that followed a two-year investigation.

The complaint alleges that the trafficking ring has been linked to a fatal fentanyl overdose on the Lummi Nation reservation in Whatcom County and may be linked to several other fatal fentanyl overdoses.

Ten of 13 defendants arrested in Washington are behind bars at the Federal Detention Center at SeaTac, while three defendants, including Jackson, were released on bond.

“This investigation revealed that the trafficking organization was a supplier to a community that was rocked by four fentanyl overdose deaths in just four days,” U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman said in a news release.

One of those lives lost to fentanyl in the Lummi nation was Joe Morris’s brother, Lindy.

“My brother struggled with addiction all of his life,” Morris in a Tuesday interview with The Center Square. “My brother was my hero all of my life until he wasn’t after drugs took over and made him a different person.”

He continued: “He was in jail for a while, and when he got out, his wife and everybody around him was still using, and he just went right back to using.”

Morris said his brother died on Sept. 17, 2023, one of four fatal fentanyl overdoses in the Lummi Nation during a four-day period.

“It really makes me angry,” he said, adding he was pleased to hear about the federal indictments last week.

Morris, ironically, works as a certified peer counselor helping people battling addiction.

“They should get life sentences. I mean, how many lives have they taken?” asked Morris. “I deal with people that are living in addiction every day, and they tell me there’s so much fentanyl out there.

The situation is exacerbated by the very nature of the high produced by the drug, he observed.

“It’s way worse now because people are a lot more desperate to get the drug because” the high “only lasts a short time and they need more, and it’s cheap, too.”

According to the indictment, officials believe Jackson’s Renton home was the center of the crime ring and that he used personal accounts to launder money from fentanyl dealing.

It is unclear if any taxpayer money given to Jackson for her advocacy work was misused as part of the alleged crime ring.

Jayme Hommer, Chief Development Officer of Boys & Girls Clubs of King County emailed a statement to The Center Square that, in part, read: “Boys & Girls Clubs of King County has learned of the arrest of Marty Jackson. Upon learning this information, our organization has taken corrective action, and she is no longer employed by Boys & Girls Clubs of King County. We will cooperate fully with authorities and have also launched an internal investigation to ensure the ongoing safety of Club members and staff.”

Hommer’s email said all Boys & Girls Club employees undergo a thorough criminal background check prior to hire and annually.

“This group distributed more than 800,000 fentanyl pills throughout the United States, including in Arizona, Texas, Missouri, Montana, and Georgia,” Seattle field office FBI Special Agent in Charge Richard Collodi, said in the news release.

Over the course of the investigation, law enforcement seized more than 846,000 fentanyl pills, nearly 7 kilograms of fentanyl powder, 7 kilograms of cocaine, and 29 firearms, per the news release. More than $116,000 in cash was also seized.