A 46-year-old man was arrested in Snohomish County after authorities found more than 100 fentanyl pills and about $524,000 in cash proceeds from suspected drug dealing. The arrest is part of a larger effort by Snohomish County law enforcement to target and reduce criminal activity in the south end of the county.

The Snohomish Regional Drug Task Force (SRDTF) said they found the man at a parking lot in the 11200 block of 4th Avenue West in Everett on Sept. 16. During the arrest, the task force recovered 150 M30 fentanyl pills, drug packaging, a digital scale and a "large amount of stolen property."

SRDTF said officers also found the cash, which is assumed to be from dealing drugs.

“This one just kind of fell in our laps,” said Jay Baines of the Snohomish Regional Task Force. “We didn’t know he was as big as he was and were surprised when we served the search warrant at his apartment and we found all that money.”

Two other vehicles the suspect owned were also seized.

The Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office and Everett Police Department (EPD) have both worked hard since April to take down criminal activity in south Snohomish County. Since they started focusing on the area near Airport Road and Highway 99, there have been more than 150 citations and 360 arrests – in that area alone.

“It’s basically an open-air drug market,” said Baines. “It’s loaded with hundreds of addicts down there and it's been a chronic problem for business owners.”

The man in this most recent arrest is believed to be a suspect who officers believe is responsible for a large portion of the drugs sold in the area.

While the arrest makes a dent in the local fentanyl problem, Baines said there’s more work to be done.

“I can’t even describe to you how prevalent it is out there on the street,” said Baines. It’s just what everybody is using.”

Baines wants to send a warning about rainbow-colored fentanyl pills that they call “skittles” due to their candy-like colors. Baines warned these pills are specifically targeted to younger populations and could come with deadly consequences.

He also warned of counterfeit drugs that market themselves as Xanax and Adderall.

“If you don’t know where that Xanax or Adderall came from, you need to be super aware of that because there’s fentanyl in a lot of those counterfeit pills and it’s killing students out there,” said Baines. “You better know where that pill came from because it could be the last pill you ever take.”