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Kahlil Carpenter, 30, of the 1800 block of Marmora Avenue, was charged with first-degree strict liability for drug-induced death and other drug-related charges, according to Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina and Evesham Township Police Chief Christopher Chew.
A 37-year-old woman suffered a fatal overdose in Evesham Township last year on fentanyl-laced heroin she bought from Carpenter the day before she died, Coffina and Chew said.
Carpenter was served with the warrant and new charges on Tuesday at the Burlington County Jail in Mount Holly, where he was being held on an unrelated narcotics charge. He was awaiting a detention hearing in Superior Court.
An investigation began on Dec. 14, 2019, after Evesham Township police officers responded to Inverness Circle on a report of an unconscious and unresponsive female. They entered the home and found the victim, Holly Morris, in her bed, the prosecutor said.
An autopsy by Burlington County Medical Examiner Dr. Ian Hood concluded that Morris died from fentanyl toxicity, with levels in her system five times greater than the amount necessary to cause death, Coffina said.
The investigation determined that Morris had met Carpenter in Lumberton Township on Dec. 13, 2019, to buy the drugs, the prosecutor said.
Assistant Prosecutor Jeremy Lackey is handling the case, which was investigated by the Evesham Township Police Department.
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