Indiana teen charged with using Snapchat to sell fentanyl that caused overdoses, 1 death
EVANSVILLE — An Indiana teen accused of using Snapchat to sell fentanyl-laced pills that led to at least three overdoses and killed a 19-year-old last year was indicted on federal charges, officials said Friday.
Jeremial Leach, 19, allegedly advertised counterfeit pills on his social media. Two women and a minor boy who authorities say bought pills from Leach all overdosed, and one of the women died, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Indiana. Authorities also caught Leach selling the drugs to two other minor boys and later recovered fentanyl, cash and weapons at his house.
Leach, who went by "Mel" on Snapchat and other social media, was indicted by a grand jury on one count of distribution of fentanyl resulting in death, two counts of distribution of fentanyl, and one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl. He faces up to life in federal prison if convicted.
The indictment comes as officials across the nation are attempting to crack down on the rampant sale of illegal drugs happening on social media platforms.
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Defendant used Snapchat to sell drugs, prosecutors say
According to a criminal complaint, Evansville Police Department detectives determined Leach's pills, which allegedly contained fentanyl, killed 19-year-old Elisabeth Duncan in June 2022. In the aftermath of her death, investigators compiled a trove of digital evidence from Duncan's phone and the phones of other overdose victims.
Leach put himself on police radar through his brazen social media posts, according to court records. Investigators followed Leach's Snapchat with an undercover account and saw his posts "advertising the sale of marijuana, blue pills, and firearms," according to the complaint.
The blue pills were fentanyl-laced counterfeit oxycodone, and investigators said multiple overdose victims believed Leach's fentanyl pills to be genuine prescription medications.
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The people who overdosed communicated with Leach through Snapchat and text messages, according to the complaint.
"My mother overdosed the other night your shit is laced with fentanyl... she's lucky to be alive right now," the daughter of a woman who overdosed texted Leach, court records show.
Investigators searched Leach's residence and said they recovered the following items:
33 blue pills marked "M 30" (the code used by the company Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals to denote genuine oxycodone tablets)
Digital scale
Glock 19, 9mm handgun
Diamondback DB9, 9mm handgun
Four telephones
About $1,843 in cash
Leach's attorney, Conor O'Daniel, declined to comment on the charges.
Social media sites commonly used for illegal sales
Fake prescription pills are easily obtained online on social media and e-commerce platforms, officials say. The rise of social media has made it so drug sales are no longer relegated to street corners and the dark web. The DEA said it investigated 80 cases of illegal drug sales through social media apps in 2021 nationwide.
"(C)riminal drug networks are abusing social media to expand their reach, create new markets, and target new clientele," according to the DEA. "This includes by selling deadly fake fentanyl and methamphetamine pills, often to unsuspecting teenagers, young adults, and older Americans, who think they are buying the real thing."
The DEA said drug traffickers advertise by posting "stories" that disappear after a short amount of time on platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. They often use code words and emojis for different illegal drugs so they aren't detected by authorities or social media moderators. For example, a blue circle emoji or the letter "P" might symbolize oxycodone and Percocet.
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A bipartisan group of members of Congress is hoping to establish federal requirements for social media companies to report fentanyl sales happening on their platforms to authorities with the Cooper Davis Act, named after a Kansas teen who died of an overdose on fentanyl-laced pills purchased on Snapchat. Opponents, including the ACLU, warn the measure incentivizes social media companies to surveil and censor users' speech on the platforms, leading to over-censorship of vulnerable groups.
"Tragically, we’ve seen the role that social media plays in that by making it easier for young people to get their hands on these dangerous drugs – we have to put a stop to it now," said New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a co-sponsor of the legislation.
Fentanyl continues to drive surge in overdoses
According to the DEA and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, ingesting as little as two milligrams of fentanyl can be fatal, depending on a person’s body size, tolerance and past usage.
DEA studies found that about six out of every 10 illegal fentanyl tablets sold in the United States contain a potentially lethal dose of the drug.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY NETWORK: Indiana teen used Snapchat to sell fentanyl-laced pills: Prosecutors
