A federal drug raid early Thursday morning (Feb. 28) in both Spokane, WA and Los Angeles, CA resulted in 41 arrests, with 12 in Spokane County alone. A federal indictment filed last month alleges a number of people to be distributing oxycontin in violation of the Federal Controlled Substances Act.

The raids were a result of an ongoing investigation by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force and were conducted by the DEA offices in Seattle and Los Angeles with assistance from nearly two dozen law enforcement agencies in Los Angeles and Spokane.

Three of the suspects arrested in Spokane County have already appeared in federal court and each plead not guilty to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance. One of those suspects was Sally Blakely Guthrie, the owner of Flamin' Joe's, a popular restaurant specializing in chicken wings, located in north Spokane, Spokane Valley and on the South Hill.

If convicted, some of the suspects face mandatory minimum sentences of 20 years in prison. Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck told KXLY4:

Today’s operation is another fine example of the outstanding partnerships that have been forged between agencies who are committed to ridding our communities of violent organized criminals who prey on our City.

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