St. Tammany deputies have made a pair of arrests related to the overdose death of a teenager.
"Two people are facing murder charges after toxicology results revealed a local 15-year-old died after overdosing on the dangerous drug fentanyl," Sergeant Suzanne Carboni said in a news release.
The suspects included the woman who cops say gave the child pills and the alleged dealer who sold them to her.
"In the evening hours of July 12, deputies with the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's Office responded to a Bush-area residence in response to a 15-year-old suffering from what family members believed to be an opiate overdose. Efforts to revive the juvenile were unsuccessful," Carboni explained.
She says they found pills that appeared to be Percocet in the home, but later analysis of those pills revealed they were fentanyl.
"Through further investigation, detectives learned Felisia Grantham (DOB 1/9/1981), a family member of the deceased teenager, had purchased the pills earlier in the day from Alvin Laurant (DOB 10/21/2001) of Covington. Detectives were able to secure arrest warrants for both Grantham and Laurant."
They both face a string of charges including second degree murder after STPSO upgraded the charges this week.
Sheriff Randy Smith urged all residents to use this death and subsequent arrests as a warning.
“Fentanyl is deadly, and fake prescription drugs that are laced with fentanyl are being sold on the streets. The best way to protect yourself is to only take prescription drugs that are obtained from a licensed pharmacy.” Sheriff Smith said. “Parents please talk to your children and warn them of the dangers of experimenting with drugs. One pill can kill.”
