An Auburn man who was second in command of a drug distribution organization tied to an Aryan Family prison gang was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice Western District of Washington, Thomas Carver, 61, of Auburn, received a 12-year sentence in U.S. District Court in Tacoma for his leadership role in a multi-state drug distribution ring.

According to the department, Carver and the drug ringleader discussed shipments of 50 pounds of methamphetamine and hundreds of thousands of fentanyl pills. The department reports that Carver served as second in command to drug ringleader Jesse Bailey, a high-ranking member of the Aryan Family prison gang.

Records filed in the case state that over a two-year investigation of the drug trafficking ring, agents seized an estimated 223 pounds of methamphetamine, an estimated 830,000 fentanyl pills, multiple-pound quantities of fentanyl powder, cocaine, heroin, marijuana, $338,000 of suspected drug proceeds and 48 firearms from members of the conspiracy.

Additionally, during the arrest of members of the drug trafficking organization, law enforcement seized approximately 22 pounds of methamphetamine, 26 pounds of fentanyl in pill and powder form, six pounds of heroin, more than $330,000 of suspected drug proceeds and 177 additional firearms.

Four of those firearms were seized from the Auburn residence where Carver was arrested, according to the Department of Justice. Additionally, law enforcement found more than $43,000 in cash in the room where Carver slept.

Carver had been in custody at the Federal Detention Center at SeaTac since his arrest in March 2023. Subsequently, on July 9, 2024, Carver pleaded to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances.

Carver is the seventh member of the drug ring to be sentenced, and some defendants have received sentences as long as 13 years in prison. The ringleader Bailey pleaded guilty last month and is scheduled for sentencing on Feb. 28, 2025. Less culpable defendants have been sentenced to 20-50 months in prison, according to the department.

“You are not a local dealer. You are someone who helped sell and distribute across the region… What is alarming are the references to these different flavored or colored pills now that are out there potentially in our streets,” Chief U.S. District Judge David G. Estudillo told Carver at the sentencing. “I do think their intent is to bring in new users … as in younger individuals who can be easily swayed by these things.”

U.S. Attorney Tessa Gorman said the leaders of the drug ring spread much misery in the area, and although Carver knows first-hand the nightmare of methamphetamine addiction, he routinely brought 50 pounds of methamphetamine to the community for distribution. She added that Carver also dealt large amounts of fentanyl-laced pills, which has caused an unprecedented amount of overdose deaths in the community.

This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven and multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.