A Philadelphia Man Admitted His Role In The Drug Overdose Death Of A Montco Man

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, PA — A Philadelphia man has admitted his role in connection with the drug overdose death of a Montgomery County man back in September 2020.

Derrick Jackson, 59, pleaded guilty on Wednesday in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court to a felony count of drug delivery resulting in death relating to the September 2020 death of Jason Evans, according to court records and media reports.

Evans, 49, a Hatfield resident, was found unresponsive in the bed of his apartment on Sept. 30, 2020, by emergency medical personnel and police officers, according to the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office, which had announced charges against Jackson back in April 2021.

Police officers on the scene located small plastic bags that were later confirmed to have contained heroin and the more lethal fentanyl.

A joint investigation had determined that the baggies of drugs, stamped "Bad Bunny," were also found in Jackson's possession when Philadelphia police conducted a vehicle stop of Jackson in the city in late 2019, according to Montgomery County prosecutors.

"Through multiple interviews, cellphone information and video surveillance, detectives learned that Evans had purchased heroin/fentanyl from [Jackson] two days prior to his death, as well as purchased drugs from Jackson prior to his other non-fatal overdoses," the District Attorney's Office said in a April 2021 news release.

Evans had previously overdosed on heroin and fentanyl back on July 24, 2020, but he survived.

On Wednesday, Jackson pleaded guilty to the charge of drug delivery resulting in death, court records show. The Times Herald newspaper of Norristown reported that the guilty plea came shortly before a jury trial in the matter was set to begin for Jackson.

The Times Herald reported that Montgomery County Common Pleas Court Judge Wendy Rothstein ended up sentencing Jackson to 4 to 8 years in state prison plus one year of probation.

State court records show that Jackson was originally charged with additional felonies and misdemeanor counts, but those charges were dismissed in exchange for the guilty plea.

Police investigators had previously linked Jackson to the drugs that killed Evans, and also said the same drugs were found at the scene of the non-fatal overdose of Rebecca Ennis on Sept. 13, 2019, as well as that woman's fatal overdose on Dec. 1, 2019, in Sellersville, Bucks County.

Authorities said that Evans and Ennis' boyfriend both knew Jackson through work.

"The defendant was selling poison and branding it 'BAD BUNNY,' And in pursuit of making money, this defendant left a wake of death and destruction behind," Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele said back in April 2021. "There are far too many lives cut short by overdose deaths, and law enforcement in Montgomery County will continue to be vigilant in holding drug dealers accountable for selling the deadly drugs that kill people."

Jackson was represented by defense attorney Jonathan D. Consadene.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Kathleen McLaughlin and Evan Correia.