Three arrested for selling marijuana to school children in Ballard

Three people were arrested for selling marijuana to local school children at a residence in the 6700 block of 15th Ave NW on Wednesday morning. SPD SWAT officers arrested the individuals after they were served with a search warrant at about 5:30 a.m. Read more from the SPD blotter:

I-502 made some marijuana products legal in Washington State. One of the things it didn’t do was make it legal to sell marijuana to school-aged children.

Earlier this month the Seattle Police Department received complaints about middle school and high school students buying marijuana and marijuana-laced brownies from a residence in the 6700 block of 15th Avenue NW. Narcotics detectives quickly launched an investigation. Detectives observed school-aged children from Ballard High School and Whitman Middle School going to the back door of the suspect residence and buying marijuana.

On the morning of April 24th Seattle Police SWAT officers, Narcotics detectives, and North Precinct patrol officers served a search warrant on the suspect residence. Five adults were inside the suspect residence who were subsequently detained and interviewed by detectives.

The primary suspect, a 50-year-old male, was arrested at his place of employment by Narcotics detectives.

Marijuana cigarettes, brownies, and multiple bags of marijuana were found in several rooms inside the residence. Seven trays of marijuana brownies were found in the basement along with a marijuana grow operation. Detectives also located multiple firearms in the primary suspect’s bedroom.

The following was recovered from the suspect residence:

1,200 grams of marijuana (total amount)

99 marijuana cigarettes “joints” (part of the 1200 grams)

7 marijuana plants from an active grow in the basement

8 trays of marijuana brownies

4 shotguns

1 .22 caliber rifle

6 handguns

2 pellet guns

$4,755.00 in U.S. currency

All of the recovered items were placed into evidence. Detectives conducted an extensive interview with the primary suspect. He along with a 21-year-old male and a 21-year-old female were booked into the King County Jail for Investigation of Violation of the Uniform Controlled Substances Act/Delivery (felony drug dealing). The other three subjects in the house were interviewed and released pending further investigation.

Seattle Police officials spoke with school administrators at Ballard High School and Whitman Middle School this morning to inform them of the police search warrant. The motivation for police action was to protect our youth, the community, and those nearby school facilities.

This remains an active and on-going narcotics investigation.