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Man accused of fentanyl poisoning death arrested for second-degree murder, drug dealing
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HAMMOND — A man was arrested on murder and drug dealing charges after the fentanyl-related death of another man, Hammond Police said Wednesday.
Trystan McMillion, 26, was arrested for second-degree murder after the overdose death of Nicholas Platt, 27. McMillion was announced on Wednesday as one of thirteen people arrested on fentanyl and other drug dealing charges by Livingston Parish Sheriff's narcotics division.
Chief Edwin Bergeron Jr. said that Platt's murder, which began to be investigated in April, is expected to be tried by District Attorney Scott Perrilloux. Bergeron said this type of case has never been prosecuted in the 21st Judicial District, where Hammond is, but it must first go to a grand jury where it will be determined if McMillion will face an indictment.
Bergeron said that, after a narcotics test, it was determined that Platt was killed by a fentanyl overdose. McMillion is the prime suspect in selling Platt the fentanyl that led to his death.
The Fentanyl Overdose Response Team was created to investigate these cases more effectively and take fentanyl off the street, Bergeron said. Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent Paul Seale said that, while working with Hammond's Fentanyl Overdose Response Team, they have seized eight pounds of fentanyl since the team's creation in January.
"The last six to eight months, we seized eight pounds of fentanyl," Seale said. "Eight pounds of Fentanyl equates to 355,000 deadly doses. If you take St. Tammany Parish and you take Tangipahoa Parish and take the population a put them together, that's enough fentanyl pretty much to have a deadly dose for every citizen in these two parishes."
Bergeron expressed how fentanyl arrests differ from their typical drug arrests.
"It's not like a normal crime scene," Bergeron said. "We're going after the drug dealers, we're going after the people that are selling the fentanyl, that are poisoning members of our community."
Representatives from the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's Office, Homeland Security Investigations and the Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office were also present at the news conference, echoing Bergeron and Seale's commitment to ending an ongoing fentanyl crisis.
Platt's father said at the news conference he hopes his son's tragic death could help lead to more fentanyl-related arrests and spare other families from the heartbreak of losing a child or other loved one.
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