A Navy seaman allegedly sold fentanyl-laced pills to a fellow sailor, leading to a tragic overdose and subsequent cover-up attempts.
San Diego: So, there’s this crazy story about a Navy seaman who was dealing drugs right on his ship. Bailey Szramowski, 27, is accused of selling fake Percocet pills that were actually laced with fentanyl. Sadly, one of his shipmates ended up dying from an overdose.
According to the feds, Szramowski knew those pills were dangerous but sold them anyway. He was caught after a sailor named A.N. died from taking the pills while on leave in the San Francisco Bay Area.
When police searched A.N.’s RV, they found evidence of drug use, including a rolled-up dollar bill with a white substance. An autopsy later confirmed that A.N. died from acute fentanyl intoxication.
Just ten days later, another sailor from the same ship had a close call with an overdose but was saved by Narcan. This sailor, C.L., ended up cooperating with investigators and pointed the finger at Szramowski.
It turns out Szramowski had been selling these pills for about a year. He even had a system where sailors paid him through CashApp. When he found out C.L. was talking to the authorities, he tried to cover his tracks by suggesting that A.N. was the one who sold him the pills.
Things got even messier when A.N.’s family said Szramowski called them after the news broke, trying to get them to delete messages from A.N.’s phone. He was worried about facing serious charges.
In interviews, A.N.’s former fiancée confirmed that Szramowski was the dealer and that he also used drugs himself. She even saw A.N. with the pills he bought from Szramowski just before his death.
Now, Szramowski is facing some serious charges, including distribution of fentanyl resulting in death. If convicted, he could be looking at a long time behind bars, anywhere from 20 years to life.
