NC man charged with dealing fentanyl, meth that led to buyer’s fatal overdose

A Moore County man was arrested last week in connection with an overdose death reported last year in Chatham County.

Nathanial Lynn Rush, 28, of Robbins, North Carolina, was charged with felony death by distribution in a death in the Bear Creek community in southwestern Chatham County, according to a Chatham County Sheriff’s Office news release.

Rush was arrested Dec. 6 in Moore County, the release said. He is being held in the Moore County jail under $100,000 secured bail until he can be transferred to Chatham County to face the charge, it said.

Rush is scheduled to appear in Chatham County District Court in Pittsboro on Dec. 14.

The N.C. Medical Examiner’s office conducted an autopsy on the 23-year-old male victim and determined he died from a fatal mix of methamphetamine and fentanyl, the Sheriff’s Office reported. The victim bought the drugs from Rush on the day he died in July 2021, Chatham County investigators said in the release.

Gov. Roy Cooper implemented the state’s “Death by Distribution” law on Dec. 1, 2019, in response to a rising number of opioid-related deaths. The law allows law enforcement to prosecute dealers for drugs that cause an overdose.

The News & Observer reported this week that North Carolina’s fentanyl-related overdose deaths have risen steadily every year since 2016, from 442 to 3,163 in 2021, according to the state Department of Health and Human Services.

In 2021, that made dying from an overdose nearly three times more common than dying in a car accident, at a time when the state’s traffic deaths were at a 20-year high, The N&O reported.

Advocates are now asking state legislators to add fentanyl to the list of drugs covered by the state’s Good Samaritan Law, which protects overdose patients and bystanders who call 911 from prosecution if they possess small amounts of certain drugs, including heroin and cocaine.

In Chatham County, the Sheriff’s Office has taken a number of steps to fight the epidemic, including the launch of a Sheriff’s Prevention Partnership on Controlled Substances, a coalition of law enforcement, emergency personnel, medical and mental health experts, educators, survivors and others.

“Our staff members take public health and safety seriously, and we recognize that drug abuse and addiction impacts us all,” Chatham County Sheriff Mike Roberson said in Monday’s news release.

“Law enforcement must continue working together with the community to create lasting change. As we unite, we must be willing to share resources, ideas, and experiences in order to make educated decisions on behalf of our families and shared community,” he said.

Rush is the third person to be charged with death by distribution in Chatham County. Deputies also arrested a 41-year-old Cary man and a 38-year-old Sanford woman earlier this year in connection with overdose deaths reported in 2021.

Both arrests were the result of a yearlong investigation, The N&O reported.

Investigating “death by distribution” cases can be challenging and time consuming, Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Lt. Sara Pack told The News & Observer in an email Monday. That’s because such cases are “incredibly difficult to prove or prosecute, making it even more essential for authorities to conduct thorough investigations and follow all leads,” Sheriff’s Office Capt. Ronnie Miller added.

“Acquiring autopsy and toxicology reports, conducting evidence testing, holding interviews, obtaining search warrants, reviewing phone and internet records, and so on — each phase of the process takes time, manpower, and resources from multiple agencies. Without teamwork and persistence, this outcome would not have been possible,” Miller said.