Friday Harbor Man Arrested in Money Laundering Scheme

Skagit County, Washington- On January 24th, 2016, Swinomish Gaming Commission Agents contacted the Swinomish Police Department and advised Officers of a money Laundering Investigation they had been conducting on a man identified as Christopher Faylor and several other individuals.

On October 6th, 2015, Swinomish Casino Compliance Specialists, acting on a Suspicious Activity Report asked casino Surveillance to conduct a review of suspicious gaming activity of two male suspects.

In one transaction, Mr. Faylor traded $700 in $20 bills into the cash cage  for $700 in $100 bills. In the second suspicious transaction, Mr. Faylor traded $1000 in $20 bills into the cash cage for $1000 in $100 bills.

On November 22nd,  2015, Casino Surveillance obtained photographs of Mr. Faylor as he attempted to exchange $1000 in $20 bills for $1000 in $100 bills. This transaction was denied as the Cash Cage Manager asked for Identification and Mr. Faylor could not produce Identification.   Prior to this incident, Mr. Faylor exchanged $300 dollars in $20 bills and $400 in $10 bills for a total of $700 in $100 bills. He also cashed out a gaming ticket for $235.

On January 24th, 2016, Mr. Faylor was observed in the casino, inserting a large amount of $20 bills into two machines and then cashing them out with little to no  gaming activity.  Mr. Faylor was also passing money to other persons who were also exchanging money through gaming or in person at the casino cash cage.

Mr. Faylor has a history of delivering controlled substances and was previously taken into custody on a $50,000 arrest warrant from San Juan County for this offense.   During that incident, Mr. Faylor was in possession of $10,771 in cash. This money was broken down and banded into $1000 increments with color bands for each denomination.

Mr. Faylor attempted to pass a jacket containing the money to an associate during his arrest.   Officers seized  his cell  phone into evidence, where it rang 20 times in a very short period of time. The screen showed the caller to be “COLE” each time.

A known associate involved in the Casino Laundering that night was identified as Clayton COLE Barnett.  Barnett was observed shouting into a cell phone and hitting the steering wheel of his truck multiple times following the arrest of  Mr. Faylor.

A search warrant was granted for the phone by Skagit County District Court.  Results of the search warrant determined that the  illegal activity related to the Casino money laundering was likely from the sale of illegal drugs.    Text messages utilized terms commonly known to be used in communications involving methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine and prescription pill sales and trades.

Probable cause was established to charge Mr. Faylor with the crime of  Money Laundering. This is a common practice for “drug dealers” to disguise  or conceal the source of illegal drug money by trading small denomination bills for a smaller amount of large denomination bills.

Mr. Faylor was arrested on March 29th and is currently being held in the Skagit County Jail in Lieu of $50,000 bail for two counts of Money Laundering, One Count of Resisting Arrest and one count  of Giving a False Statement to a Public Servant.