Tyler man charged with murder after fentanyl overdose death

Published 3:40 pm Thursday, November 21, 2024

A Tyler man has been arrested on a murder charge after a fentanyl overdose resulted in another man’s death, the Smith County Sheriff’s Office said Thursday afternoon.

Calvin Spencer was arrested this week and is being held in the Smith County Jail on a $1 million bond for the charge of murder.

The investigation began Oct. 5, when county deputies were called out to 9521 County Road 490 in Tyler about a possible drug overdose that resulted in the death of Michael Crone. Crone’s roommate found him lying on the bathroom floor.

During the investigation, deputies saw a small piece of tin foil just inside the sink in the bathroom which contained what appeared to be a partially burned substance, according to the Smith County Sheriff’s Office. Also located within the same area was a rolled up piece of paper which appeared to be used as a straw.

A neighbor said Crone had asked him questions about fentanyl in the past.

Documents revealed two other men were arrested for tampering in connection with the death investigation. Crone’s roommate Joshua Williams and a neighbor Jasson New both remain in the Smith County Jail on tampering with evidence charges, which is a third-degree felony.

From interviews conducted at the scene, deputies discovered Crone’s cell phone was missing. This, along with Crone asking the neighbor about fentanyl, as well as the narcotics paraphernalia located at his home and the totality of circumstances surrounding his death, led detectives to suspect Crone’s cell phone to contain information regarding his death. Smith County Sheriff Larry Smith said it also led detectives to believe the cell phone had been destroyed in order to hinder the investigation into Crone’s death.

Detectives soon learned about Spencer, who was known to have sold fentanyl pills to Crone in the past. He works as a barber at a truck stop on East Northeast Loop 323. Investigation revealed Spencer had cut Crone’s hair.

On Oct. 28, the autopsy and toxicology report was received from Forensic Medical of Texas at Tyler. The cause of death was listed as mixed alprazolam, diazepam, codeine and fentanyl toxicity. Based on the medical examiner’s report, the cause of death was fentanyl toxicity, Smith said.

Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, is often mixed with street drugs such as heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine, increasing its lethality.

“Unfortunately, for the people that are users… they’re so hooked that you could tell them 10 times today it’s gonna kill them, and it doesn’t faze them,” Smith said during a press conference Thursday afternoon.

According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, drug poisonings, including those involving fentanyl, are a leading cause of death for Americans aged 18-45.

“For a lot of people… loved ones never come out of it once they use for the first time,” Smith said. “You sit in the bedroom with the parents of a 17-year-old kid and he died in his sleep from using fentanyl. You just can’t fathom what it does to families… and ruins people’s lives, just like any hard drug.”

On Tuesday, Spencer was arrested and booked in the Smith County Jail for possession of a controlled substance. The next day, he was interviewed by detectives when he admitted to purchasing the pills the previous night with cash and a cash app. Spencer also admitted to having purchased fentanyl pills at least on four previous occasions within the past couple of months, Smith said. Spencer also told detectives he had previously sold M-30 pills to Crone.

“It’s a round tablet and has M-30 stamped on it,” Smith said. “They are manufactured with a pill press in Mexico and they mix fentanyl with it because it’s less expensive. Unfortunately, there’s no quality control and it takes the size of about a pinhead to be fatal. So that’s what we’re dealing with.”

Spencer’s admissions in that interview led to a probable cause warrant, prompting Spencer’s murder charge, Smith said.

Spencer posted bonds totaling $50,000 on four drug charges prior to the murder warrant being added to his charges. “(Spencer) had the opportunity to make bond… and goes right straight back into the business,” Smith said. “Some people will never learn.”

At 9:20 a.m. Thursday morning, Spencer was taken into custody at his Tyler residence on the murder charge. During that arrest, several handguns, 1,000 fentanyl tablets in a cell phone were seized.

He remains jailed.

Alongside Smith County District Attorney Jacob Putman, Smith plans to work with the district attorney’s office to investigate the supply chain of fentanyl, including identifying those, like Spencer, providing it to individuals in the community. Additionally, they aim to pursue prosecution through the United States Department of Justice to bring offenders to federal court.

“We’ve got the cell phones,” Smith said. “We’ll get a warrant to view everything on their cell phone, their social media… their contacts to see if they link up with any other overdose deaths.”

Smith issued a stark warning: “If you deal with fentanyl in Smith County, you might not get caught today, you might not get caught tomorrow, but you’re gonna get caught, and you’re gonna pay the piper when you do.”