Mount Vernon Drug Dealer Arrested for Two Counts of Controlled Substance Homicide

Mount Vernon, WA – On May 17th, 2018, the Skagit County Sheriff’s Office arrested a 28-year old Mount Vernon man on 19 charges. The charges include  suspicion of two counts of Controlled Substance Homicide, Violation of Uniformed Controlled Substance Act, Unlawful Possession of Firearms, and Possession of Counterfeit Controlled Substances as well as other charges.  The man is currently being held in the Skagit County Community Justice Center on an Investigative Hold.

According to Probable Cause Affidavits of Arrest obtained by SkagitBreaking.com through a public disclosure request, the man,  identified as 28-year old Justin O’Brien Miller, was arrested at his apartment in the 100 block of North 4th Street in Mount Vernon on May 17th, 2018.

 

Miller is accused of allegedly selling counterfeit narcotics  laced or made with Fentanyl in Skagit County that resulted in at least two overdose deaths. Fentanyl is a schedule II Controlled Substance.

According to court documents, on March 31st, 2018, at about 11p.m., a Bow man was contacted by a friend, identified as 18-year old Garrett Arendse.  Arendse wanted him to get him some “Perk 30’s. That man put ARENDSE in contact with MILLER to see if he would sell Perk 30’s to ARENDSE.  MILLER agreed to sell to ARENDSE “this one time.” That man then directed ARENDSE to MILLER’s apartment in Mount Vernon, which is confirmed in Text messages detectives retrieved. The last text message between the two was at 12:15 a.m. on April 1st, 2018.  Detectives believe this is when ARENDSE arrived at MILLER’s Apartment.

After leaving MILLER’s Apartment,  it is believed ARENDSE went to a home on Alger Cain Lake Road and stayed the night with a 16-year old friend. The friend told Detectives that he and ARENDSE  played video games and listened to music.  The friend told detectives that ARENDSE  had smoked marijuana and vaped that night and the friend told detectives  that ARENDSE also crushed a pill and snorted it. The friend then said he “went to sleep” before ARENDSE did.   When the 16-year old awoke in the morning, he discovered that ARENDSE was unconscious and not breathing. Lifesaving efforts were unsuccessful.  Skagit County Sheriff’s Deputies arrived and ARENDSE was pronounced deceased at the scene.

An Autopsy was performed on ARENDSE. The results indicate that he died as the result of “Acute Fentanyl Intoxication.”  Toxicology reports indicated the presence of 2.87ng/mL Fentanyl, .81 ng/mL Nor fentanyl, .043 mg/L Alprazolam (consistent with therapeutic levels) and 43 ng/mL Carboxy-THC.

Five days later, on April 6th, 2018, around 12:53 a.m., a 34-year old Clear Lake man called 9-1-1 to report he had just returned home to the 12000 block Mill Street in Clear Lake  and found his finance’,  27-year old Rebecca (Becca)  Lynn Doyle, on the floor and she was not breathing. Medical Units and Deputies responded to the scene and attempted life saving efforts, but Doyle was pronounced dead at the scene.

Investigators learned through cell phone records  that the Fiancé’ had set up Percocet and Xanax to be bought  from MILLER by DOYLE at MILLER’s  apartment on April 3rd, 2018 in Mount Vernon.

A juvenile co-worker “getting a ride home from work” from Doyle confirmed to Detectives  that after work on April 3rd,  DOYLE drove to Rite Aid in Mount Vernon where DOYLE  obtained $40 cash and she told the teen they were going to the “ghetto” to get some drugs before she took her home.  DOYLE then asked her Fiancé to have the drug dealer come out to the car  because she didn’t want to take the teen into the apartment. Doyle  then asked her Fiancé  to let his mom know that she would be a little late because she had to take the teen home.

After arriving at MILLER’s Apartment complex and parking near a dumpster, a male came out to the car and contacted DOYLE. DOYLE gave the man the money and he handed her two white pills. DOYLE identified the pills to the teen as Xanax and “pure” Fentanyl. DOYLE told the teen she could die if she took the whole thing because it was pure Fentanyl from the black market.   Doyle told the teen she overdosed on it once before and her Fiancé had to take her to the hospital, so she watches how much she takes now by cutting it up and taking little pieces at a time. DOYLE then drove to the Mount Vernon AMPM and then took the teen home.

On the following day, April 4th, 2018, a phone call placed by DOYLE to her  finance’ at 6:44 p.m., lasted 1 minute and 21 seconds. A text message received by DOYLE from the fiancé at 9:46p.m. stated “Ok Justin (MILLER) is expecting you, 4 perks, 3 bars.” Xanax is commonly referred to as bars and Percocet is commonly referred to as Perks in the illegal drug world.

During the course of the investigation, the Fiancés mother told Detectives that On April 5th, 2018, the Fiancé’s mother arrived at their Clear Lake apartment around 5:00 p.m.  The mother found DOYLE sitting on the floor,  slumped over, breathing erratically.  The Fiancé’s mother was unable to wake DOYLE and became frustrated and left.  This was roughly 7 hours before the Fiancé reportedly came home and called 9-1-1 after finding her on the ground not breathing.

An Autopsy was performed on DOYLE. The results indicated that DOYLE died as a result of Fentanyl Intoxication. Toxicology reports indicate that Doyle had  15ng/mL Fentanyl, 2.3ng/ML Nor Fentanyl, .036 mg/L Alprazolam (Xanax), and 50 ng/mL Carboxy-THC in her system when she died.

In early May of 2018, the Skagit County  Interagency Drug Enforcement Task Force used confidential informants (CI) to perform several  controlled buys from MILLER at his apartment in Mount Vernon. During the investigation the CI purchased pills that appear to be both Oxycodone and Xanax from Miller. The pills purchased from MILLER were sent to the Washington State Patrol Crime Lab for identification. One type of Pill was identified as Alprazolam (XANAX)  and another type  was identified as Fentanyl.

Based off training and experience. Deputies believe that these pills are home pressed and counterfeit. In previous controlled buys of authentic Percocet pills, authentic pills are consistent in color, have a pharmaceutical coating and do not easily crumble. Currently in Washington and British Columbia, Fentanyl is appearing in counterfeit pill form, frequently seen as Percocet 30 mg and Oxy 30 mg pills. These pills are usually the result of  production in a clandestine lab where Fentanyl is obtained from  an overseas location (China), the Fentanyl is mixed with a binder and pressed into a pill form and stamped to represent another controlled  substance. These pills are appearing in the form of pills such as Percocet 30 mg.

On May 17th, 2018, Skagit County Law Enforcement agencies executed a search warrant at Justin MILLER’s Residence. The front exterior door to MILLER’s apartment was broke down by Officers.  There were four deadbolts and heavy-duty hinges on the door.  MILLER was taken into custody and admitted to being a drug dealer.  MILLER told Officers his house was a “revolving door” and that he sells to so many people that he cannot remember how many people he deals with.  He told Officers he sells Coke, Marijuana and pills to various ages of people from “Kids” to “old people.’  MILLER also admitted that he knew someone had overdosed on his product before.  During the search, Officers found multiple types of pills, scales and money. There was a white powdery substance that was individually wrapped in plastic baggies inside a larger plastic bag labeled “1.0 Gram.” These appeared to be prepackaged weighed out bindles of cocaine.  The powder was field tested and was a presumptive positive for cocaine.  Various other pills were found that need to be identified. There was a large bag of pill capsules that were not loaded yet.  There were also several capsules that were loaded but not labeled.  In the freezer, Officers found blotter paper, commonly used to store LSD.  When MILLER was asked about the blotter paper he told Officers it was probably acid (the street name for LSD). He said he had sold it in the past but didn’t know if he got rid of it all yet or not. Deputies also found two shot guns and  MILLER is a convicted Felon and barred from owning firearms.  Law Enforcement also seized three cell phones from his apartment. Social Media posts show MILLER holding a gun in his lap. The post is captioned “Jus’ a reminder, my door’z always open..lol. This tactic is sometimes used by Drug Dealers as a scare tactic for anyone that is thinking about robbing them.

On May 19th, 2018 around 8:00 p.m., MILLER made a recorded phone call from the Skagit County Community Justice Center to a male relative.  In the call, MILLER  told the male that he was in custody on “like a bunch of felonies; like 10 felonies, dude, I live within a school zone, I didn’t know that the pills that I were selling, I’m screwed, they’ve got like a bunch of charges that are like with intent to sell, 2 of them are within a school zone, which is an enhancement, I had 2 shotguns at my house; I’m a convicted felon, I’m not supposed to have anything like that so, there’s like, I’m screwed man, they’re going to send me to prison, throw the book at me hard, there’s this thing going on where everybody’s been addicted to heroin, and they’re trying to hit people hard about Xanax, Fentanyl , any of the stupid pills that I had, they’re the worst one.” Later in the conversation the male tells MILLER, “If you’re innocent, you fight it.” MILLER responds by saying “I’m Not.”

MILLER has drug related felony convictions dating back to 2011.

Justin O’Brian Miller is currently being held in the Skagit County Community Justice Center on an INVESTIGATIVE HOLD for the 19 charges listed below. He is being held in Lieu of $750,000.00 bail.

1. VUCSA
2. Counterfeit Substance Schedule I/II/III
3. VUCSA in Certain Public Places
4. VUCSA in Certain Public Places
5. Unlawful Possession of Firearm 1st Degree
6. Unlawful Possession of Firearm 1st Degree
7. Cont Substance Schedule I/II-NARC/IV-FLN
8. Cont Substance Schedule I/II-NARC/IV-FLN
9. POSS Counterfeit Cont Substance
10. VUCSA
11. Possession of Counterfeit Substance
12. VUCSA
13. Unlawful Possession of Firearm 2nd Degree
14. Unlawful Possession of Firearm 2nd Degree
15. Counterfeit Substance Schedule I/II/III
16. Controlled Substance Homicide
17. Controlled Substance Schedule I/II/III
18. Counterfeit Substance Schedule I/II/III
19. Controlled Substance Homicide