Members of the Blood Tribe participated in anti-drug rally in January 2015. Photo from Blood Tribe Chief & Council / Facebook

Bobby Weasel Head, a member of the Blood Tribe of Alberta, has been charged with manslaughter in connection with the deaths of two people from a drug overdose.

Weasel Head, 41, was originally charged with two counts of criminal negligence causing death but the charges were upgraded, The Calgary Herald reported. He is accused of selling fentanyl, a dangerous opioid, to Roxanne Blood and Timothy Eagle Speaker. The pair died after taking the drug at a birthday party on the reserve in March 2015.

Weasel Head also faces a drug trafficking charge, the paper said. Two co-defendants are charged with criminal negligence causing death and possession for the purpose of trafficking fentanyl.

The tribe declared an emergency in early 2015 to combat the use of fentanyl. In one six-month period, 20 people died and 60 overdosed from the drug.

The tribe has seen a decline in overdoses since dedicating more law enforcement resources to the problem. Anti-overdose kits also have been distributed on the reserve to prevent more deaths.

Get the Story:
Blood Tribe man faces rare manslaughter charge in fentanyl overdose case (The Calgary Herald 3/9)

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