A Philadelphia man is facing felony charges in connection with the September 2020 overdose death of 49-year-old Jason Evans, of Hatfield Borough.
Derrick Jackson, 55, has been charged with drug delivery resulting in death, along with felony counts of possession with intent to distribute, criminal use of a communication facility and misdemeanor counts of possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia and reckless endangerment, in connection with the investigation into Evans’ death.
According to the complaint, Hatfield Township Police were dispatched to an apartment on Penn Avenue at 7:23 a.m. on Sept. 30, 2020, for a report of a cardiac emergency that was later amended to be an overdose. Upon arrival, police and medics located Evans unresponsive in his bed, the report states.
Emergency medical personnel attempted to revive Evans, however those efforts were unsuccessful, police said. Evans was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Following the autopsy and the results of toxicology tests, forensic pathologist Dr. Kahlil S. Wardak opined that Evans died from a lethal dose of fentanyl and heroin in his system, and it was a direct and substantial factor in his death, according to the report.
Investigators noted that small plastic bags stamped with “BAD BUNNY” were located at the scene. The contents of those bags was determined to be heroin and fentanyl, police said.
A joint investigation by the Hatfield Township Police Department and the Montgomery County Detective Bureau was launched, which revealed that Evans had previously overdosed on July 24, 2020 and Sept. 5, 2020, however he survived both incidents. In both cases, bags of the “BAD BUNNY” heroin were found at the scene, police said.
Investigators added that bags of “BAD BUNNY” were also located the scene of the non-fatal overdose of Rebecca Ennis, of Sellersville, on Sept. 13, 2019, as well as the scene of her fatal overdose on Dec. 1, 2019.
The report states that Jackson was known to both Ennis and Evans via their employment, and a December 2019 traffic stop by Philadelphia Police found Jackson to be in possession of “BAD BUNNY” bags. Additional investigation revealed that Evans had purchased “BAD BUNNY” heroin from Jackson two days prior to his fatal overdose, as well as his two-prior non-fatal overdoses, according to the report.
“The defendant was selling poison and branding it ‘BAD BUNNY.’ And in pursuit of making money, this defendant left a wake of death and destruction behind,” said Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele. “There are far too many lives cut short by overdose deaths, and law enforcement in Montgomery County will continue to be vigilant in holding drug dealers accountable for selling the deadly drugs that kill people.”
Court records indicate that charges were officially filed on March 30, and Jackson was subsequently taken into custody on April 9. Jackson was arraigned by Magisterial District Judge Ed Levine, who set bail at $250,000 bail. He was then taken to county jail after failing to post bail.
Jackson’s next court appearance is a preliminary hearing in front of Judge Levine on April 21 at 1:45 p.m.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using court records and the affidavit of probable cause.
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