The latest turn in the controversy swirling around fired former Centralia Police Department sergeant and current Lewis County sheriff candidate Tracy Murphy has landed the situation close to where it started: with allegations that Murphy publicly accused Sheriff Rob Snaza and other prominent local residents of operating or protecting a cocaine trafficking ring in the runup to his failed sheriff candidacy in 2022.
His denial of that allegation is ultimately what led to him being fired by Centralia Police Chief Andy Caldwell last April, and it has dogged his campaign in recent months as a growing list of individuals have come forward to provide testimony that Murphy and his wife routinely discussed the unfounded claims against Snaza and other prominent Lewis County Republicans.
The latest to join that list is a Lewis County chaplain.
In an Oct. 20 email to Caldwell, Marcus Read wrote that the Murphys on two occasions in 2022 told him, and other prospective voters, that Snaza was “responsible for cocaine trafficking in Lewis County.”
Read is listed among clergy who serve Lewis County Chaplaincy Services, which provides chaplains to assist victims at emergency scenes, fires and other traumatic events such as death notifications. He specifically serves the East Lewis County area, according to the Chaplaincy Services website.
His testimony follows that of former sheriff candidate and current Chehalis Deputy Police Chief Matt McKnight, who earlier this month told Caldwell via email that Tracy and Sherri Murphy met with him at his home in 2022 and over several hours laid out claims that Snaza was “protecting drug dealers,” despite subsequent public denials by Tracy Murphy as recently as last June.
• Matt McKnight says Tracy Murphy spoke of sheriff’s connection to drug trafficking: https://tinyurl.com/4ymr3jrj
Read’s testimony is similar, based on his own memory of events that occurred around the same general time, as Murphy unsuccessfully pursued election as Lewis County sheriff in 2022.
He said the first instance occurred at the Baw Faw Grange after a Sunday morning service for Boistfort Valley Christian Church had concluded.
“In a small group of people, which included my wife and myself, Sherri Murphy made the accusation that the current Sheriff (Sheriff Robert R. Snaza) was directly involved in this illegal (cocaine trafficking) enterprise,” Read wrote. “She also accused several other members of the Sheriff's office, members of the Chehalis Police Department, and prominent elected officials as also being involved. I do not recall if she named any at that time, as I was more surprised that she would make that accusation to me, due to my connection and consistent contact with the sheriff's office and the Chehalis Police Department.”
Read’s email Caldwell continued: “As Sherri Murphy continued her accusations, her husband Tracy Murphy stood there and nodded in agreement several times. When she stopped, someone asked Tracy directly if that was true. He nodded again and stated, ‘Yes. And if you knew all the names involved you would know just how much you need me, the only one who can clean it up.’"
The second instance occurred a few weeks later at a private home, Read wrote, noting that, “As before, Sherri Murphy started the conversation in a small group about how Sheriff Snaza was responsible for cocaine trafficking in Lewis County. She mentioned that the Taylors (Chad and Coralee Taylor) were also involved, and indicated that is how they had the money to buy ‘The Paper’ (The Chronicle). She stated that they did this to keep some stories (the cocaine trafficking) buried and blast those who speak out about it, like her husband (Tracy Murphy). At this time I pressed Tracy Murphy to give some names. He advised that there was an ongoing investigation or even investigations between several agencies, including federal ones. He advised that his role in JNET gave him access to information that other people (like us) just did not have. Upon further pressing by me and others present, he finally gave several names of local elected officials and prominent business leaders.”
According to Read, the list included a Lewis County commissioner, Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer and state Rep. Peter Abbarno.
“He stated that there was an official chart that showed all the connections and ‘who did what for who’ and that this would all come out, and they would all be prosecuted, but only if he was elected,” Read wrote. “These are the two (and only two) events that my profession allows me to discuss any further, and on the record if needed.”
Read joins several residents and public officials who have come forward in the months since Murphy’s firing to allege that Murphy — or his wife — has accused Snaza of protecting drug dealers. Those include Port of Centralia Commissioner Ally Pickard, Lewis County Clerk Scott Tinney, Lewis County Republican Party Chair Greg Rohr, Toledo resident Kyle Wheeler and Lewis County Commissioner Sean Swope.
Read’s testimony returns to something similar to the allegations made in an anonymous complaint submitted to the Washington state Criminal Justice Training Commission (CJTC) in January that ultimately led to Murphy’s firing.
The complainant alleged Murphy had made “repeated statements” claiming Snaza acquires and protects drug dealers, who then distribute cocaine to prominent area Republicans, including Chad Taylor, Swope and Abbarno.
The complainant, citing a “reasonable fear of retaliation” as the basis for anonymity, noted two primary reasons for the complaint: Either Murphy is “knowingly spreading false information for political purposes,” or else the allegations “have some basis in fact,” and Murphy “is not reporting them through appropriate legal or professional channels and may instead be using this information to influence or gain leverage in an upcoming election.”
After it became public, Murphy’s campaign released a news release about the anonymous complaint, calling it “politically motivated.” All of the others named in the complaint offered blanket denials, and a subsequent internal investigation determined the claims had no merit.
At the time, Murphy led the now-defunct Joint Narcotics Enforcement Team (JNET) — which was composed of both Chehalis and Centralia police, state Department of Corrections staff and federal Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) members.
Though the private investigator hired by the Centralia Police Department to look into the complaint against Murphy determined he could not sustain the allegations, he did take issue with Murphy’s “categorical denial” that he made statements suggesting Snaza protected drug dealers.
The denial contradicted several witnesses within the department, who reported having discussions with Murphy about associates of Snaza possibly being involved in drug activity, as well as discussions about Snaza either protecting or choosing a policy of “non-enforcement” against drug dealers.
As additional evidence were the now-infamous sticky notes posted on Murphy’s cubicle wall. The notes, which were first released redacted and then later unredacted in subsequent records requests, revealed a list of names and identifying information.
Each note labeled the individual’s possible connection to illegal drug activity, with titles such as drug user, transporter, supplier and money launderer.
A sticky note with Snaza’s name was placed at the top.
Caldwell fired Murphy after concluding he’d made false statements while omitting material information during an internal investigation.
Murphy later cited a non-disclosure agreement he’d signed with the DEA prohibiting him from disclosing information without authorization. Murphy told The Chronicle after his firing that the information he’d initially withheld pertained to a federal investigation, not a JNET investigation.
In July, Snaza announced he’d requested state and federal investigations into the allegations of his own involvement in organized crime and narcotics trafficking, though nothing appears to have come of it thus far.
“If he was willing to take a task force, a JNET task force, without telling any administrators what he was doing and doing this, what would he be capable of doing if he was sheriff?” Snaza asked during an interview with The Chronicle earlier this month.
In a video posted to his campaign’s Facebook page on Oct. 4, Murphy said the sticky notes were “generated from a DEA complaint that came in in 2025.”
“The sticky notes are solely just investigative notes for the onset of an investigation,” Murphy said. “... The names that are on there don’t necessarily mean that they’re part of nefarious activities or that they’re even being looked at as a suspect in anything, and that includes Sheriff Snaza. Two people were named in the original complaint. These are just associates.”
A potential impeachment disclosure (PID) was issued by Prosecutor Meyer in May. A PID, known informally as a Brady letter, is used to disclose to a criminal defendant information about a government witness that may be exculpatory or impeaching. Brady lists also serve as an unofficial record of those found to have engaged in misconduct.
In his disciplinary notice to Murphy, Caldwell maintained that “officers assigned to the DEA task force remain fully accountable to CPD policies, procedures, and chain of command,” describing the police department as the “parent agency.”
“While they operate ‘under the direct supervision and control of DEA supervisory personnel’ for task force duties and must ‘adhere to DEA policies and procedures,’ the Task Force Agreement contains no exemption from CPD rules,” Caldwell said.
Caldwell cited additional problems beyond the “false and misleading” first interview, including Caldwell’s directive to Murphy that “neither JNET nor the Centralia Police Department was the appropriate venue to investigate the political candidate you lost to in the Sheriff election.”
In an April 27 Loudermill hearing prior to Caldwell’s final decision, Murphy disputed the investigation’s conclusions, saying in a statement: “At no time did I provide false or misleading information, nor did I omit material facts. My responses were truthful and provided in good faith, consistent with my legal obligations and understanding at the time.”
Caldwell has cataloged the reports from Read, McKnight, Swope, Tinney, Rohr and others in memorandums added to Murphy's administrative investigation file. Murphy has denied making the allegations to Tinney or Swope, according to previous reporting by The Chronicle.
The former sergeant is scheduled for an arbitration hearing — after the general election in November — between his union representatives at Teamsters Local 252 and the City of Centralia to contest his firing.
“I know that the union wouldn’t be spending as much money as they’re spending to defend me and get my job back if they even thought that I was in the wrong,” Murphy said in a video posted to his campaign’s Facebook page on Sept. 17. “So, we know the truth, and we know that it will come out.”
Murphy finished second in the August 2026 primary election behind Lewis County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) Special Services Chief Gabriel Frase. Both men are running as Republicans.
The two will face off in the Nov. 3 general election.
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