A spree of high-stakes crimes has come to an abrupt end as Edgar Oswaldo Gonzalez Barragan, a 32-year-old Mexican national residing in Federal Way, Washington, faces charges following a series of gutsy robberies involving tribal casinos and a local bank. Details gleaned from official sources indicate that Gonzalez Barragan was booked at the Federal Detention Center at SeaTac on allegations of robbery and attempted robbery.
The cascade of events initiated on August 1 and culminating in his arrest depicts a troubling cinematic-like sequence, only that the guns are real, the fear palpable, and the stakes life-altering. Starting with the Tulalip Quil Ceda Creek Casino, where Gonzalez Barragan allegedly menaced the cashier with a silver handgun, the spree extended across three tribal casinos and concluded at a U.S. Bank branch in Shoreline, Washington. Despite the cashier's defiance, which prevented theft on August 1, the alleged bandit didn't halt there.
As reported by the Department of Justice, subsequent attempts and robberies, as authorities pieced together, led them to the Silver Reef Casino on the Lummi Nation Indian Reservation and then to Little Creek Casino on Squaxin Island Tribal land, where Gonzalez Barragan continued his daring demands. A brief detour from his casino targets included the brazen theft of a $12,000 "Jaws of Life" piece of equipment from a Riverside Fire Authority truck. The string of incidents left local law enforcement racing to connect the dots.
According to the Department of Justice, Fast forward to the final act on August 11, when fear struck a Shoreline bank teller as what "sounded like a large object" preceded a demand for money. Leaving this scene, reportedly dressed in the same attire as during the bank heist, Gonzalez Barragan's luck ran out, and the authorities caught up with him. The circumstantial attire had similar characteristics to the bank robber's dress code, evidencing the suspect's lack of change in wardrobe choices after the crime.
Investigative efforts to unravel this tangled web of crime drew upon various forms of evidence, including cell phone location data, that placed Gonzalez Barragan near each crime scene. Assistant United States Attorney Celia Lee, who serves as a Tribal Liaison, is taking point on the prosecution. It should be noted that these charges are merely allegations, and Gonzalez Barragan is presumed innocent until proven otherwise.
