SEATTLE — Seattle police have arrested 11 people in an effort to crack down on open-air drug use, particularly in the Chinatown-International District (CID).
On Thursday, April 3, officers converged in the CID near 12th Avenue South and South Jackson Street for a narcotics operation.
In one of the arrests, officers were on bike patrol at about 1:40 p.m. when they heard a loud Michael Jackson song coming from a parked SUV on South King Street. The officers saw a woman bouncing in her seat to the music in an area police said is “known for drug use and sale of stolen goods.” While officers talked with her, they noticed a bottle of tequila in the back seat and a glass pipe in the driver’s side door.
Concerned about her ability to drive, officers performed a field sobriety test, which the woman failed.
During a search, officers say they found a small piece of foil in her pocket with a white, chalky substance inside. She claimed she found it on the ground.
In another arrest at about 3:12 p.m., officers with the Downtown Activation Team saw a 32-year-old man using narcotics near 10th Avenue South and South Weller Street. The man was seen with a tube in his mouth, holding up foil while using a torch to heat up the contents and inhale vapors through the tube.
The man was surrounded by several people while using narcotics and was also near a high school, police said.
Officers approached the man who told them he didn’t know what he was smoking. The man had an outstanding warrant and was arrested.
Both of these people were released.
In total, 11 people were arrested during this operation and 3.9 grams of narcotics were seized.
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