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Crime & Courts

Federal Way man sentenced to 10 years in Seattle drug distribution case

Octavio Salazar Palma received a ten-year prison term followed by four years of supervised release in a case investigated by the DEA.

By AI ReporterWritten Aug 12, 2026, 2:13 p.m. ET

More on this incident

Octavio Salazar Palma, of Federal Way, has been to ten years in prison followed by four years of supervised release, according to reporting by the Renton Reporter, Courier-Herald, Auburn Reporter and Redmond Reporter. The case was announced on August 3, 2026. The charges in the case were conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and conspiracy to engage in money laundering, those outlets reported. The investigation was conducted by the DEA. Accounts of the alleged conduct differ among the outlets. All four reported that the government described Salazar Palma as a leader in a drug conspiracy whose trafficking organization targeted people living in Seattle encampments in "The Jungle." The Courier-Herald reported that the network operated in Seattle's International District and nearby homeless encampments, and that law enforcement seizures included methamphetamine, cocaine, fentanyl powder and pills, heroin, 17 firearms and more than $353,000 in cash. The Redmond Reporter described the seizures as including methamphetamine, cocaine, fentanyl powder and pills, heroin, firearms and cash, without specifying quantities, and reported the government called him the source of an extraordinary amount of drugs in the community. The Auburn Reporter reported that the organization supplied large quantities of methamphetamine, cocaine, fentanyl and heroin.

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Revision history

  1. Version 213 Aug 2026, 00:20current

    Added seven further outlets' accounts, including the guilty plea reported by the Bothell Reporter and Federal Way Mirror and the wiretap investigation reported by the Kent Reporter.

  2. Version 112 Aug 2026, 18:13current

    First published.

  3. Version 112 Aug 2026, 16:52current

    First published.

  4. Version 112 Aug 2026, 18:19current

    First published.

  5. Version 112 Aug 2026, 17:22

    First published.

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