Seattle police patrol officers working proactively on Tuesday recovered fentanyl, a machete, and drug paraphernalia in two areas known for narcotics activity.
On March 25, officers were on their regular shifts when they observed open-air drug activity on Aurora Avenue and in the Chinatown-International District.
The first arrest happened just before 1 p.m. in the Chinatown-International District near 12th Avenue South and South King Street. Officers saw a 17-year-old boy reaching into his torso area and pulling out baggies with a white, clear substance inside. The area is a SODA Zone (Stay Out of Drug Areas) known for drug trafficking and the sale of stolen goods.
Police saw several people exchanging cash for the baggies and then immediately smoking white rock objects bought from the teen. In one of the interactions, officers saw the teen suspect sell the narcotics to a man in a wheelchair who paid for the drugs with cash and a meal in a Styrofoam container.
The 17-year-old suspect was arrested. He told officers he was not selling drugs, and that the money was “from Social Security.” He also told police the drugs they found on him were for personal use.
Seattle police recovered 0.9 grams of fentanyl, 4.4 grams of meth and $57 cash.
The teen was booked into the Judge Patricia H. Clark Children & Family Justice Center.
A second arrest took place near the busy Aurora Avenue North corridor later in the day as officers were on bicycle patrols.
At about 5:30 p.m., officers saw a group of people gathered in a parking lot in the 8900 block of Aurora Avenue North.
A 27-year-old suspect was spotted holding a glass pipe with a hose attached. Officers detained the suspect and asked him to empty a small clutch. When the suspect did so, a baggy with what appeared to be several large shards of meth fell out.
The suspect told officers they were “fake drugs” because when he tried to smoke them, he did not get high. The suspect was arrested for drugs – synthetic narcotics – possession.
Officers then searched the suspect’s backpack and found a digital scale as well as a tin mint container which had several small baggies inside containing white powder. The suspect told police the powder was fentanyl he bought downtown.
As Seattle police continued looking into the backpack, they also found a large machete with its handle wrapped in an umbrella.
Following this arrest, officers recovered 3.3 grams of suspected fentanyl in addition to 9.6 grams of suspected meth.
The 27-year-old suspect was transported to the North Precinct and released.
Incident Numbers (in order): 2025-079536, 2025-079832
