Undercover Phoenix police officers arrest 8 after posing as drug buyers in 'The Zone'

Phoenix police made eight arrests this week as they searched the downtown encampment of tents known as "The Zone," where many unhoused people live.

Throughout April, undercover police officers entered tents and contacted at least six people to pay for fentanyl and meth.

The arrests, unveiled with unusual publicity, have come amid growing public scrutiny of safety in and around The Zone. They have come after residents filed a lawsuit against the city, complaining of drug use, violence and public nuisance.

Police and prosecutors touted their efforts to protect the Phoenix's "vulnerable" unhoused community. In June, Phoenix police busted one man with 1,000 fentanyl pills. In November, prosecutors trumpeted that they had gotten a conviction and a three-and-a-half-year sentence for a man they claimed was preying on the homeless.

But available records show the arrests on Monday came to just 33 oxycodone pills and 30 grams of meth, or about enough to fill eight sugar packets.

On Wednesday, the city passed out flyers announcing that Ninth Avenue, between Washington and Jefferson streets, would be the first block they would clear of people living in tents in response to a lawsuit for not enforcing public nuisance laws.

Two days earlier, police began executing search warrants and making at least three arrests on Ninth Avenue.

The Police Department did not comment on whether the order affected its investigation.

Plan in motion: Phoenix determines which block of 'The Zone' homeless encampment will be cleared out first

Police arrested five people on charges of sales of narcotics and dangerous drugs. Three others were arrested on warrants.

The arrests were part of a combined effort in the area, consisting of several different teams and units within the department, according to Phoenix police spokesperson Sgt. Brian Bower.

Police drove into the area with multiple vehicles at about 6 a.m. Monday. People living in the encampments didn’t know what was going on, according to one resident, Susana Gutierrez.

The bust was part of a longer investigation into the sales of drugs “negatively affecting our community in the downtown area,” Bower explained in an email.

According to ACLU Legal Director Jared Keenan, these types of “war on drugs” investigations do more harm than help since they target users, the people most in danger of being harmed from overdoses and drug-related violence.

Police arrested a couple living together in a tent, Crystal McDougall, 39, and Matthew Burke, 28, after undercover officers claimed they bought 20 “blue oxycodone m30 pills” and one-and-half grams of meth.

“People who are selling small amounts of drugs are doing it to fund their own habit,” Keenan said, and sometimes they do it because they know the person they sell to might sell them some back down the line.

In Arizona, selling a dangerous drug is considered a class 2 felony, which can come with three to 12.5 years of prison.

Out of six classes, class 2 felonies are the highest in legal severity outside of class 1 felonies, which only apply to first- and second-degree murder.

Selling meth is special.

Arizona has singled out the crime of selling meth, applying a range of five to 15 years of prison time.

Police also arrested Jewel Armstrong on charges of selling five oxycodone blue pills and 28.35 grams of meth to an undercover officer. That’s about seven sugar packets worth of meth.

“They're not going after the people who are actually making or supplying all sorts of drugs into the communities, they're going after and arresting users,” Keenan said.

In June 2022, police arrested Cristian Machado on suspicion of distributing fentanyl pills to dealers that would specifically target unhoused people.

According to police, the officers received tips that someone known as the “Ghost” had come to the area to sell to people. Police used several informants and electronic surveillance and made undercover purchases to find Machado.

In November, he was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison.

Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell released a statement, saying the sentence was a warning and a reminder of her office’s commitment to come down on dealers who target the vulnerable.

“To target those who are experiencing homelessness, and particularly vulnerable, is especially cruel,” she said about the case.

Drug offenses are the number one crime prosecuted by the county attorney. They represent 33% of all charges that the office takes to court.

“The people that police and prosecutors want to keep safe are the same people they are arresting every day,” Keenan said.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Undercover Phoenix officers pose as drug buyers, arrest 8 in The Zone