A Sussex Borough father and son have been charged with the fentanyl-laced overdose deaths of three borough residents, all of whom died within a week, authorities said.
Victor Johnson, 45, and his son, Aljauan Sanders, 18, were indicted on 11 counts on June 20, including three counts of first-degree strict liability death, as well as charges of distribution, conspiracy to distribute, and knowingly engaging in conduct that poses a substantial risk of death to another person, all third-degree crimes. The guys were scheduled to appear in state Superior Court in Sussex County on Tuesday.
According to court documents obtained by the New Jersey Herald, the New Jersey State Police responded to drug overdoses at three distinct sites in Sussex Borough on March 30, April 1, and April 4, respectively. Despite efforts by first responders, the three individuals, aged 25 to 60, died, leading local and state authorities to conduct further investigations.
Johnson and Sanders, who resided with his father in a Main Street apartment, were initially charged with drug offenses in early April after telephone conversations discovered on one of the victim’s phones linked Johnson to drug transactions, according to records.
On April 4, police searched the apartment with a search warrant and allegedly discovered multiple vials of crack cocaine, 27 individually dosed and packaged cocaine ready for distribution under a television stand in Johnson’s bedroom, and two doses of cocaine in Sanders’ desk drawer, according to police. A scale compatible with the sale of narcotics was also discovered on the premises, authorities added.
Charges against Johnson and Sanders were enhanced on June 12 after autopsy reports revealed that the three victims died from consuming cocaine laced with fentanyl, according to police papers.
Each count of first-degree strict responsibility for drug-induced death carries a maximum sentence of two decades in prison.
Distributing ‘Poor Batches’ of Cocaine
Sanders told authorities in April that he and his father began selling illegal drugs around Christmas 2023 to help pay their bills, according to records. Johnson would acquire his drugs from Newark, according to Sanders, and he and his father often provided people in the region, including the three victims, whom he referred to as “friends.”
Sanders, who became “very upset and emotional” when told of the three overdose deaths, admitted that he knew one of the “batches” of cocaine his father had obtained from a different source was “bad,” meaning it had been laced with fentanyl, and that he flushed his portion of the batch down the toilet, according to documents. Sanders told investigators his father “wasn’t sure” if the batch was bad, but he was concerned about what he had distributed, according to the records.
Police claimed the packaged cocaine containers seized in the apartment were identical to those found at the scenes of all three overdoses. According to records, lab testing eventually verified the presence of fentanyl in the cocaine discovered in the flat.
So Far, Drug Overdose Deaths Have Been Lower Than in 2023
Despite drug-related deaths in March and April, Sussex County has not seen a steady increase in suspected overdoses this year.
According to data from the state Department of Health, there have been 17 suspected overdose deaths in the county as of July, which is comparable to the same period in 2023 and 2022.
Sussex County saw 23 suspected overdose deaths last year, the lowest number since 2014, according to state data. At the zenith of the opioid epidemic in 2020, a “hot batch” of fentanyl-laced heroin killed 11 people in Sussex County, according to authorities, bringing the total to 44.
So far this year, New Jersey has seen a steady decline in suspected overdose deaths compared to 2023, when the numbers had already slowed. According to data from the state Department of Health, there were 1,119 suspected overdoses in Garden State between the beginning of 2024 and July 20, compared to 1,581 over the same period in 2023.
The number of overdose deaths in the Garden State fell dramatically in 2023, following years of increases due to the opioid crisis. In 2023, there were 2,564 as opposed to 3,054 in 2022 and 3,144 in 2021. Counselors ascribed an increase in drug usage during the COVID-19 epidemic to worry and despair caused by social isolation and the dread of becoming ill.