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Jose D. Maldonado, of Easton, sold the victim and his friend drugs containing heroin/fentanyl the day before he died in Nov. 2019, the Bucks County District Attorney's Office said.
Maldonado was charged with drug delivery resulting in death, possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, involuntary manslaughter, and other related offenses.
State troopers responding to the St. John's Lutheran Church cemetery in Milford Township the morning of Nov. 13 found the victim dead on a paved walking path, authorities said.
The victim was later identified as Jerry Carpenter, of Perkasie. Police also found a glassine bag containing heroin and fentanyl next to his body, they said.
An autopsy was conducted, and the medical examiner determined that the cause of death was fentanyl and heroin toxicity.
Investigators learned that Carpenter and his 25-year-old male friend had met up with Maldonado on North West End Boulevard in Quakertown and had bought drugs from him, the DA's office said.
After leaving, the two men drove to the cemetery, where evidence indicates they used the drugs, according to authorities.
That's when investigators say Carpenter's friend had a seizure at the cemetery and lost consciousness. When he woke up, Carpenter was on the ground next to him, the DA's office said.
Later that day, troopers responded to a home in Milford Township, where EMS transported a 25-year-old man to the hospital after he had a series of seizures, authorities said.
Investigators later learned that Carpenter and the 25-year-old man knew each other and had been together the day before, when they visited Carpenter’s bank in Perkasie, they said.
Maldonado was arrested months later following a drug investigation in Bethlehem (Northampton County). Police found him with heroin and fentanyl on the day of his arrest, they said.
He was charged with Carpenter’s death in December 2020.
A judge revoked Maldonado's bail and deferred his sentencing for 60 days following the verdict.
“The real credit in this case goes to the diligence of the investigators, particularly Pennsylvania State Police and the Bucks County Detectives, who never gave up hope in their quest for justice for Jerry Carpenter,” Chief Deputy District Attorney Christopher Rees said.
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