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Lateef Reevey, 31, of Long Branch, pleaded guilty on Thursday to first-degree strict liability for drug-induced death, according to Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni.
The charges stem from an overdose death that took place last February in Tinton Falls, Gramiccioni said.
Lucy Yardley, 25, of Flanders died on Feb. 21.
Reevey admitted that he provided Yardley with the heroin stamped “Eternity” and that the heroin/fentanyl mixture caused her death, the prosecutor said.
Im New Jersey, a person who distributes a Controlled Dangerous Substance (CDS) is strictly liable for a death which results from the injection, inhalation or ingestion of that substance, Gramiccioni said.
Reevey is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 9, 2021 by Superior Court Judge Lourdes Lucas.
Prosecutors have recommended that Reevey be sentenced to six years in state prison.
Reevey also pleaded guilty to a separate, unrelated charge of conspiracy to possess CDS, Gramiccioni said.
Yardley was found dead in a motel bathroom by first responders
The following day, Tinton Falls police reportedly found Reevey in the parking lot of the same motel where Yardley had died. Gramiccioni said. At the time, Reevey possessed a quantity of heroin and cocaine, packaged for sale, as well as two cellular telephones, the prosecutor said.
As police officers approached Reevey, he broke one of the two phones, which he had used to communicate with the overdose victim two days earlier, according to Gramiccioni.
He was taken into custody and charged with two counts of third degree possession of CDS, two counts of third degree possession of CDS with intent to distribute, one count of third degree conspiracy to distribute CDS, one count of fourth degree tampering with physical evidence and the disorderly persons offense of possession of drug paraphernalia, Gramiccioni said.
Police continued their investigation while awaiting the results of an autopsy, which was conducted by the Middlesex County Regional Medical Examiner’s Office. Once the autopsy linked Yardley’s death to the ingestion of heroin-fentanyl, Reevey was additionally charged with strict liability for drug-induced death and distribution of CDS to the victim, Gramiccioni said.
Monmouth County Assistant Prosecutor Christopher J. Decker is handling the case.
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