Sinaloa cartel member arrested in Washington with wild haul of gold-plated guns, pounds of cocaine and $182,000 in cash

A Sinaloa Cartel member was busted in the state of Washington following a two-month investigation in which authorities seized a pair of blinged out handguns.

The suspect, whose name has not been released, was apprejened last week in the city of Burien, the King County Sheriff's Office revealed on Tuesday.

The drug trafficker had been under surveillance f100 hours in the Puget Sound area.

The King County Sheriff's Office said the individual was in charge of transporting drugs and money for the transnational drug trafficking organization, which was founded by the jailed notorious kingpin, Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán.

Cops in Burien, Washington, last week arrested a Sinaloa Cartel member and confiscated a trio of blinged out handguns following two months of investigation, the King County Sheriff's Office revealed on Tuesday

The Sinaloa Cartel member, whose name has not been released to the press, also was in possession of three handguns, one AR-15 and $182,249 in cash. Cops also confiscated 5,000 fentanyl/M-30 pills, 10 grams of cocaine and 2.8 pounds of fentanyl powder

Agents seized three handguns, one AR-15 style short barrel rifle along with a 60-round drum magazine and $182,249 in cash.

The cops also confiscated 5,000 fentanyl/M-30 pills, 10 grams of cocaine and 2.8 pounds of fentanyl powder.

Three vehicles were also seized in the investigation that involved several search warrants.

'Narcotics and firearms wreak havoc on our King County community, stealing futures and leaving behind an ever-lasting impact on families,' the King County Sheriff's Office said.

'We are committed to removing these destructive forces from our streets and enhancing safety within our neighborhoods.'

Authorities also seized $182,249 in cash

The arrest came just days before the Drug Enforcement Adminisration (DEA) released the 2024 National Drug Threat Assessment and signaled out the Sinaloa Cartel and its rival, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, for being at the 'heart of the synthetic drug crisis' in the United States.

Data from the  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) showed that 107,941 American lives were lost to drug-related deaths in 2022.

At least 70 percent were attributed to overdoses from fentanyl and other synthetic opioids.

'The shift from plant-based drugs, like heroin and cocaine, to synthetic, chemical-based drugs, like fentanyl and methamphetamine, has resulted in the most dangerous and deadly drug crisis the United States has ever faced,' DEA administrator Anne Milgram said.