SARASOTA, Fla. – The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office arrested an Osprey woman accused of knowingly providing a man an opioid derivative, which later contributed to his death.
Lisa Ross, 40, is charged with one count of manslaughter.
“We will continue to aggressively investigate these overdoses and put dealers behind bars, until we eliminate the supply and demand of these deadly drugs,” said Sarasota County Sheriff Tom Knight in a news release.
A report from the 12th District Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed Michael Galler died due to intoxication of furanylfentanyl and cocaine on Jan. 8. He was 39 years old.
Two days before, sheriff’s deputies responded to a report of a heroin overdose at a home on Marseilles Avenue near Center Pointe Drive in Sarasota, Florida. Paramedics administered the opioid-reversal medication naloxone, and transported Galler to the hospital.
Detectives learned Ross gave the substance to Galler in an investigation. Ross also knew the substance contained fentanyl, according to the sheriff’s office.
Deputies arrested Ross Thursday. She remains in custody without bond.
It marks the second time the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office charged someone with manslaughter related to an overdose. Detectives charged a man with culpable negligence in May after he knowingly provided a man with carfentanil, an opioid 10,000 times stronger than morphine.
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