A Grays Harbor County man has been sentenced to ten years in federal prison for distributing controlled substances, including heroin, while incarcerated at the Federal Detention Center (FDC) in SeaTac. Gabriel Armas, 38, received the sentence in U.S. District Court in Tacoma after being convicted on two counts of possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute.
U.S. Attorney Charles Neil Floyd announced the sentencing and highlighted that Armas was already on federal supervised release for a previous conviction involving heroin and methamphetamine trafficking when he was arrested again for drug distribution. While detained at the FDC, Armas distributed heroin that led to another inmate’s fatal overdose.
At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Benjamin H. Settle stated: “There can hardly be any offenses more serious than one that resulted in the death of (the victim), which happened here. And it happened in what was supposed to be a safe environment. The FDC is supposed to be safe, but it wasn’t safe for (the victim) because you made the decision to introduce drugs into this environment and as a result someone who was loved by his family died.”
U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd added: “A federal arrest and incarceration can be the first step towards getting clean and sober, but not when other inmates scheme to deal drugs while imprisoned. In this case a family was touched by tragedy when their son died of an overdose caused by this defendant. It is a priority for our office to prosecute cases of contraband in jails and prisons.”
Court records indicate that on November 14, 2023, law enforcement found Armas slumped over behind the wheel of a car in Ocean Shores, Washington. When approached by an officer, Armas fled at high speed before abandoning his vehicle after it became stuck on a bridge not designed for cars—the bridge subsequently collapsed under its weight. Authorities recovered fentanyl pills, fentanyl powder, crystal methamphetamine, and identification belonging to Armas from items left behind.
Armas was later apprehended near where he had abandoned his car and booked into custody for violating conditions related to his 2014 drug trafficking conviction. On November 20, 2023—while housed in the Special Housing Unit—his cellmate was found unresponsive and pronounced dead despite efforts to revive him; an autopsy determined acute intoxication from heroin along with olanzapine and mirtazapine as causes.
Subsequent searches revealed heroin hidden inside Armas’ cell—including some wrapped with notes offering drugs for sale—and additional quantities were discovered weeks later concealed inside pill bottles. On January 25, 2024, Armas admitted to another inmate that he profited from selling heroin within the facility and acknowledged his cellmate’s death resulted from using those drugs.
W. Mike Herrington of the FBI Seattle field office commented: “In the space of just over a week, Mr. Armas’s series of reckless actions contributed to his cellmate’s overdose death; endangered the community by fleeing law enforcement at high speed; and collapsed a bridge not designed for vehicles during that pursuit,” adding that “He has clearly not learned his lesson from his last drug trafficking conviction… This sentence holds Mr. Armas accountable for his dangerous conduct and sends a message to all would-be drug traffickers: the FBI and our partners take these crimes seriously.”
Prosecutors argued for a decade-long sentence based on evidence showing Armas sold drugs within jail facilities without regard for others’ safety or vulnerability due to addiction withdrawal during incarceration.
Following completion of his prison term, Armas will serve eight years under supervised release.
The investigation involved collaboration between the FBI Seattle Field Office, Ocean Shores Police Department (source), and Grays Harbor Sheriff’s Office (source). Assistant United States Attorney Max Shiner prosecuted the case.
