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It was Valentine's Day 2022 when Christopher Barbuto, 40, gave 28-year-old Courtney Wilson heroin and/or fentanyl, and two suspected Xanax pills, which were found in her purse near her body in Phonoexville, Chester County District Attorney Deb Ryan said.
Barbuto is also accused of giving Wilson alprazolam and methamphetamine, Ryan said. A toxicology report released by the Chester County Coroner's Office on Tuesday, Aug. 16 found that she died of the combined toxic effects of all three drugs.
Surveillance video from the area linked Barbuto to the crime, as the pair were seen arriving at his home just before 4 a.m. on Feb 13. From that time until when Barbuto called 911, Wilson never left the house, prosecutors said.
The video shows Barbuto leaving his St. Mary's Street house alone around 6 a.m. and walking east on St. Mary’s Street, then north on South Street, where he goes out of view. When he's captured in a camera two minutes later, he is holding his phone and smoking a cigarette, authorities said.
Witnesses apparently told authorities that Barbuto continued to take drugs after he knew Wilson had died and that he didn’t want to “waste” Narcan” on her.
Barbuto waited several hours before calling 911, eventually bringing officers to his house on the 200 block of St. Mary's Street, where Wilson's body was found next to an empty bag of drugs, police said. Wilson's phone had text messages between her and Barbuto that showed he was supplying drugs to her.
"Interviews with witnesses clearly demonstrate the defendant’s complete callousness regarding the death of his pregnant girlfriend," DA Ryan said. "In fact, he did not want to 'waste' Narcan on her and he continued to use drugs even after he knew she was dead."
Barbuto was charged with drug delivery resulting in death, possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, and other related offenses, Ryan said. He was being held at Chester County Prison on $300,000 bail. A preliminary hearing is set for Sept. 6.
"[Barbuto's] despicable actions and lack of actions speak volumes about his responsibility in the death of Courtney Wilson," the DA said. "We will get justice for her family and loved ones.”
Anyone with information on the case is asked to call Phoenixville police detectives at 610-933-1180.
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