SPOKANE, WA — A 36-year-old Mexican national who unlawfully re-entered the United States has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison after opening fire on Spokane police officers during a fentanyl trafficking operation.
On Thursday, U.S. Chief District Judge Stanley A. Bastian sentenced Israel Garcia to two decades in federal custody following his guilty pleas to discharging a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime and possession with intent to distribute more than 400 grams of fentanyl. Garcia was also ordered to pay over $6,000 in restitution to the Spokane Police Department. If he returns to the U.S. after his prison term, he will be subject to five years of supervised release.
Court records show Garcia, a documented gang member from the Yakima area, has a violent criminal history. In 2015, he was convicted of assault on federal officers during a drug and firearm trafficking investigation and served seven years in prison before being deported in 2021. He unlawfully returned to the U.S. in 2022 and resumed trafficking, distributing thousands of fentanyl pills into local communities.
The shooting incident occurred on October 16, 2022, when Garcia traveled to Spokane to deliver 10,000 fentanyl pills. As Spokane police moved in to arrest him, he exited his vehicle and opened fire at officers while trying to flee. Bullets were fired in the direction of multiple officers as well as Garcia’s vehicle, which still contained two passengers, including a minor child. One officer narrowly avoided being shot in the head after a round deflected off a car window, but he suffered head and facial injuries. Officers returned fire, striking Garcia and ending the threat. The passengers were unharmed.
Because Garcia was already under federal supervision at the time of the incident, he was charged with violating his release conditions in addition to the new federal charges. He will also face state charges in Spokane County related to the assault on law enforcement.
U.S. Attorney Pete Serrano called Garcia’s actions “unconscionable,” noting that he posed an immediate danger to both the public and police. DEA Seattle Field Division Special Agent in Charge David F. Reames said prison was “clearly the right place for him,” citing Garcia’s role in fentanyl trafficking and violent conduct.
The case was investigated by the Spokane Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration and prosecuted by First Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie Van Marter and Assistant U.S. Attorney Lisa Cartier Giroux.
