A grand jury indicted Antonio Hunte on charges of first-degree strict liability for drug-induced death and other drug possession and distribution charges, according to Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina.
The fatal drug sale involved a 23-year-old customer in Mansfield Township three years ago, Coffina said.
The indictment was returned on Tuesday, Feb. 1. An arraignment has been scheduled for March 1 in Superior Court in Mount Holly.
An investigation began on March 22, 2019, after Mansfield Township police officers were dispatched to a Route 206 motel for an unresponsive male, Coffina said.
Police found the victim suffering from the effects of a drug overdose, the prosecutor said. He was taken to Virtua Memorial Hospital in Mount Holly and died the next day, Coffina said.
An autopsy performed by Burlington County Medical Examiner Dr. Ian Hood determined the victim died from fentanyl toxicity. The investigation determined the drugs used in the overdose had been purchased from Hunte, according to Coffina.
The case was presented to the grand jury by Assistant Prosecutor Michael Angermeier, supervisor of the BCPO Gang, Gun and Narcotics Task Force (GGNTF). The case was investigated by the Mansfield Township Police Department, the Willingboro Township Police Department and the GGNTF.
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