GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — Gwinnett County Police have arrested two people suspected of being the distributors who sold fentanyl disguised as Percocet to a 17 year old girl; she ingested it and died the next day in her own home.
It is one more tragedy out of hundreds like it, just in the past couple of years in Gwinnett County alone.
The two suspected fentanyl distributors, now in jail, are young people themselves, ages 19 and 21.
Police are working to find their suppliers, and their suppliers’ suppliers, as the death count continues to climb.
On an online fundraiser, a sister of 17 year old Julia Zirangua of Lilburn has posted a message of grief, and a cry for help, trying to raise money for Julia's funeral and memorial.
Police say on Feb. 23, Julia bought what she thought was Percocet from two people who, police say, knew that the pills were laced with fentanyl.
Julia was found dead in her home on Feb. 24.
Police say the suspects, 21 year old Drolvin Calix Rodriguez and 19 year old Elizabeth Faye Elliot, ended up leaving a digital trail from their sale to Julia, which led detectives straight to them.
"We were able to determine that the sellers were selling these drugs via different social media platforms,” Gwinnett Police Sgt. Jennifer Richter said on Thursday, “and they were able to track those sales."
Julia is one of four teens in Gwinnett County so far this year who died overdosing on fentanyl.
According to the Gwinnett County Medical Examiner, from Jan. 2021 through Feb. 2023, 18 teens have died from drug overdoses, including the four so far in 2023.
Most of them (11 of them) were Hispanic.
And 17 of the 18 teenagers were killed by ingesting fentanyl, which means that, with the four teen deaths in the first two months of 2023, Gwinnett County is on pace to outnumber the total number of teen fentanyl deaths in 2021 and 2022 combined.
"It is my fear that this is going to be a continuous problem that's going to keep getting worse,” Sgt. Richter said. “Everyone knows this, but it bears repeating that illegal drugs are not safe and they're even more dangerous than ever now with the introduction of fentanyl."
The medical examiner keeps track of every single drug-overdose death, of people of all ages and races.
Drug overdose deaths overall in Gwinnett County were down in 2022 (when there were 174 fatal overdoses) compared with 2021 (when there were 196 fatal overdoses).
But since the beginning of 2021, through February 2023, a total of 381 people were killed from drug overdoses in Gwinnett County; 67% of the deaths--two-thirds of them--were from fentanyl.
In the case of Julia Zirangua, Sgt. Richter says detectives are consulting with the District Attorney, and it is possible that the two suspects could also face murder-related charges.
“It is possible in the state of Georgia to be charged with murder when you're involved in the sale of illegal narcotics and that sale results in someone's death,” Richter said. “So right now, we're still trying to investigate the case and get all the details that we need, and we’ll be working with the District Attorney’s Office to make those decisions.”
Richter said it’s important for family and friends who know someone who may be fighting addiction and is at risk for overdosing, to have Narcan available.
“For anyone who has a substance abuse problem, I encourage you to seek help and protect yourself with Narcan. And also remember that the Georgia amnesty law protects you from prosecution if you call for medical help when you or someone you are with is having a suspected overdose.”