Former Rhode Island man convicted of attempt to smuggle more than 400 pounds of methamphetamine and fentanyl across Strait of Juan de Fuca to Canada

Seattle –A 67-year-old former resident of Rhode Island, Texas, and Chicago was convicted late Friday July 26, 2024, in U.S. District Court in Seattle of three federal felonies connected to his scheme to smuggle duffle bags full of drugs across the strait bordering Washington State and Canada via watercraft, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman.  John Michael Sherwood was convicted following a six-day trial of Conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute and conspiracy to commit international money laundering. The jury deliberated about three hours before reaching the guilty verdict. Judge James L. Robart scheduled sentencing for October 29, 2024.

At the trial, testimony and evidence revealed that Sherwood had brought the drugs up to the Olympic Peninsula from southern California. He was attempting to use a jet ski and inflatable raft to get the drugs across the Strait to his contact on the coast of Vancouver Island.  But the smuggling attempts failed.

On April 7, 2021, a family on a beach near Port Angeles, Washington found a partially submerged duffel bag on the beach. The family alerted law enforcement who found more than 50 pounds of methamphetamine inside the bag, as well as two pounds of fentanyl powder. Close in time, a different beachcomber discovered a partially submerged and deflated Zodiac-style raft on the beach and noted a U-Haul van coming and going from the beach area.  Just days later, on April 11, 2021, a different beach walker reported another find – seven more duffel bags stashed under a bridge just up from the beach.  The bags contained 342 pounds of methamphetamine.  The estimated wholesale value of the drugs in Canada was about $1.5 million.

The FBI was able to trace the duffel bags to Walmart and could pinpoint the sale.  Sherwood used his debit card to purchase the bags and was caught on surveillance making the purchases.  Other evidence such as U-Haul rental records, motel registration, and storage locker records linked Sherwood to the smuggling attempt. Phone records revealed his communication with a coconspirator in Canada about the attempt to smuggle the drugs into Canada via the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

The conviction is the result of an extensive investigation by the FBI, Homeland Security Investigation (HSI), U.S. Border Patrol and the Border Patrol Air and Marine Unit, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), and the Olympic Peninsula Narcotics Enforcement Team (OPNET) including the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office and the Sequim Police Department.  The Kootenai County (Idaho) Sheriff’s Office, the Montana Highway Patrol and the Livingston Montana Police Department also assisted with the investigation.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Vince Lombardi and Sean Waite.