A Greenbank man was swept up in a federal investigation into a cartel-connected drug trafficking ring that had been supplying fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin throughout Western Washington, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Western Washington.
A report by a special agent with the Drug Enforcement Administration describes an intercepted phone conversation in which a leader in the Sinaloa Cartel allegedly discusses transporting large quantities of fentanyl and meth to Whidbey Island and complains about the length of the ferry lines.
Based on wiretaps and surveillance, agents obtained and executed a search warrant on 37-year-old Derel Gabelein’s home on Highway 525 in Greenbank this month. Agents recovered multiple packages of suspected meth, fentanyl and other controlled substances, as well as large amount of cash wrapped in plastic, according to a report by DEA Special Agent Dan Richter.
Gabelein was arrested and later charged in federal court with conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and possession with intent to distribute controlled substances.
Gabelein, a longtime Whidbey resident, was one of 15 defendants indicted following a three-week wiretap investigation by federal, state and local law enforcement, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Drug traffickers affiliated with the Sinaloa Cartel transported drugs from Mexico, sometime using semi-trucks, and the drug deals occurred as far north as Whidbey Island, the press release states.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office reports that the drug ring was led by Rosario Abel “Joaquin” Camargo Banuelos, 31, and his brother Francisco “Fernando” Camargo Banuelos, 24, who are both based in the Sinaloa area of Mexico.
Four Everett residents and two Shoreline residents were among the 15 people indicted.
The DEA report in the case against Gabelein describes how agents conducted surveillance on Whidbey Island both in person and electronically. The report includes a description of text messages in which Gabelein talks about a puppy overdosing after eating a fentanyl pill. The other person tells Gabelein to give Narcan to the puppy, but he responded that it was too late, and the puppy died.
The DEA report states that Gabelein was a regular customer of the Camargo Banuelos brothers’ drug trafficking operation. After agents obtained a federal wiretap order in the summer of 2024, they intercepted text messages and a phone call between Gabelein and Francisco Camargo Banuelos in which Gabelein is directed to communicate through Signal, “an encrypted application-based communication service which is often used by drug traffickers,” the DEA report states.
In June 2024, a tracking device showed a vehicle used by the drug trafficking ring traveling from Lynnwood to Whidbey Island on the ferry, the report states. The suspected drug courier went to a property on Wilkinson Road near Langley, according to the report.
In July 2024, agents intercepted phone calls in which members of the drug trafficking operation talk about delivering “blues” and “water” to the “island guy,” who was suspected of being Gabelein, the report states.
Later that year, agents followed Gabelein to his address in Greenbank, the report states.
The DEA report states that agents obtained a search warrant to read conversations that Gabelein had with another person through Facebook. In one conservation, he allegedly accused a woman of stealing some of the heroin and cocaine he purchased from a dealer, the report indicates.
On Aug. 4, agents conducted coordinated searches and arrests at several locations, including Gabelein’s home in Greenbank, the U.S. Attorney’s Office reported. In a shed on the property, agents found nearly 1,600 grams of suspected meth, about 485 grams of suspected counterfeit fentanyl pills and large amounts of cash; in another shed, the agents found two rifles and school paperwork in Gabelein’s name, the report states.
The report notes that Gabelein has a criminal history on Whidbey Island, though records show that he has no recent convictions. In 2020, Gabelein was charged in Island County Superior Court with possession of heroin, but the charge was dismissed. He was charged with bail jumping in 2016, but that charge was dismissed. Earlier in 2016, he pleaded guilty to theft in the second degree.
When he was a juvenile, Gabelein pleaded guilty to burglary in one case and malicious mischief in another.
