FARGO (KFGO) – Fatal opioid, and more specifically fentanyl-related, overdoses have been on the rise in the Fargo area over the last five years. In 2022, the Cass County Coroner’s office reported 39 opioid-related overdose deaths, an 18% increase from 2021, and nearly double the 21 opioid-related deaths the county totaled in 2020.
One year ago, the Fargo Police Department responded to and began investigating three fatal fentanyl-related overdoses over the course of a single weekend. Two 20-year-old women and a 28-year-old man died in separate incidents, all after using the drugs in pill form between August 5-8, 2022.
The alarming spate prompted public health officials and law enforcement to put out a community alert about the harms of fentanyl, a highly potent and deadly substance which has been found to be mixed with other drugs, frequently unbeknownst to the user.
Police say no evidence was ever found that any of those overdoses were related, but at least one man pleaded guilty to one count of delivery of a controlled substance resulting in death in one of the cases.
20-year-old Alijawon Armstrong of Fargo was arrested in January and sentenced to ten years in prison in July. Judge Stephannie Stiel ordered Armstrong to serve two years with eight years suspended. Armstrong will also have two years of supervised probation following his incarceration and was given just over $1000 in fines.
Matt Christensen is a Lieutenant of Criminal Investigations for the Fargo Police. He said suspects in the other two investigations have been identified and reports have been sent to the Cass County State’s Attorney’s Office for consideration of charges.
“The Fargo Police Department in conjunction with the Cass County Drug Task Force and the Fargo DEA office continue to work diligently to identify suspects in these investigations, while also appropriately applying the Overdose Prevention and Immunity Law,” Christensen said. “These types of investigations often extend over a long duration of time, and can be difficult to prove.”
So far in 2023, Cass County Coroner Kriste Ross says there have been 21 fatal drug overdoses, 16 of which were opioid-related.
