JOHNSONBURG — Two Elk County women are behind bars, charged with drug delivery resulting in the death of a 24-year-old Wilcox woman last year.
Allison Louise Miller, 29, of 115 Kennedy St., Byrnedale, and Theresa Lynn Sample, 27, of 513 Mill St., Johnsonburg, were both charged in relation to the fentanyl overdose death of Kaitlyn Marie Buerk on March 30, 2017.
Miller was Buerk’s sister, while Sample was her cousin.
According to the criminal complaints in the cases, at 3:22 p.m. March 30, state police were called to 1334 Route 321, Wilcox, for a report of a young woman who had died from an apparent drug overdose. Trooper Josiah Reiner of Ridgway-based state police arrived on scene to find that Buerk, 24, had died in her bed at the home of her parents, the complaints stated.
Five suspected heroin “stamp bags” were found on the bed under Buerk’s body, Reiner wrote in the criminal complaints, and other drug paraphernalia was found in the room as well. He was not able to locate Buerk’s cell phone, the complaints read.
He asked the family, and found that Buerk’s sister Jessica Buerk found Kaitlyn Buerk’s body, and removed her cell phone from her room, the complaints stated. Jessica Buerk was interviewed by police, and said she and her sister had been in St. Marys the night before “hanging out at a friend’s house” for about five hours, saying only that they were talking. In a subsequent interview, she said Kaitlyn Buerk had left her at her friend’s house in St. Marys, and came back about a half hour later with the suspected heroin, the complaints stated.
Police interviewed the friend, Angel Winslow, as well, and she told them that both the victim and Jessica Buerk had been in contact with Miller arranging to buy the drugs. Winslow said Kaitlyn Buerk had told her Miller had said the bags contained carfentanyl — a very strong animal tranquilizer — and were “powerful,” according to the criminal complaints.
Reiner interviewed Miller, who said she had traveled to Pittsburgh March 29 and bought 20 bags of alleged heroin from someone she knew only as Jay Jay. She then went back to St. Marys, where she communicated with Kaitlyn Buerk to arrange delivery of five bags of the alleged heroin. Miller said “she told her sister that the five bags would be in the driver side door of her vehicle in the parking lot adjacent to the Moose in St. Marys,” the complaints stated.
Reiner served a search warrant for text messages on Miller’s phone, and found that Sample was making the drug transaction in the car while Miller was at work, according to the complaints.
Eventually, Sample told police she had been sitting in the passenger seat in Miller’s car, waiting for people that Miller had made arrangements to sell the alleged heroin to. She said Kaitlyn Buerk had opened the driver’s door, and Sample told her “it’s in the door,” the court records alleged.
Both Miller and Sample were charged with possession with intent to deliver and conspiracy to possess with intent to deliver, both felonies; drug delivery resulting in death, and conspiracy of the same, both first-degree felonies; criminal use of a communication facility, a third-degree felony; and possession of a controlled substance, a misdemeanor.
The two were arraigned Tuesday before District Judge James Martin in Johnsonburg and remanded to Elk County Jail, Miller in lieu of $100,000 bail and Sample in lieu of $75,000 bail. Preliminary hearings for both women are scheduled for 1 p.m. Feb. 28 before Martin.
