Operation Doughboy Nets Cash For Task Force

A year after they cracked one of the region’s biggest cocaine rings, Spokane law enforcement officers patted themselves on the back Thursday and shared money seized from the sting they dubbed Operation Doughboy.

Nearly $200,000 was presented to the Regional Drug Task Force, made up of detectives from several local, state and federal agencies, and largely responsible for organizing the dozens of search warrants and arrests made during the sting.

Washington State Patrol Sgt. Brent Pfundheller, who oversees the task force, said the money will be added to its $500,000-a-year budget to pay for equipment, training and overtime.

“We want to continue on,” said Pfundheller, who also received an award for his efforts on the case. “The money will help us pay for more drug busts … and make some kind of difference.”

Operation Doughboy resulted in convictions of 37 people, including well-known Spokane residents who previously believed they were untouchable by law enforcement, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Rice.

Only two of the people arrested went to trial and both were found guilty. The rest pleaded guilty to various drug charges. The case involved a cocaine peddling network spanning more than four years and involving hundreds of pounds of the drug, Rice said.

, DataTimes