Loueita Hargens got a call recently that she’s been waiting a long time to receive.
It’s a call no mother wants to hear, but it wasn’t unexpected for her.
A family member told her that her son had been found dead from a drug overdose.
“He had been sick for a very long time with trying to recover from drugs and alcohol,” said Hargens.
Her son, Bradley Dykes, 46, had been in and out of jail and prison and in and out of treatment for years.
“I hadn’t talked to him in a long time and I expected this to happen way sooner than it actually did,” said Hargens.
In Hillsborough County, 57 people died in 2017 from overdose deaths, but this case is different.
The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office arrested three men for their roles in selling heroin and fentanyl in the case and federal authorities are charging one of the men in connection with the death of Dykes.
“This is the first time we are holding a dealer, a criminal, an individual, responsible for someone’s overdose death,” said Hillsborough Sheriff Chad Chronister.
Detectives arrested Corey Damond Smith and federal authorities are charging him for distribution of fentanyl resulting in the death of an individual.
Detectives also arrested Jefrey Rodriguez and Donald Calvin Hatch Jr. for conspiracy to distribute heroin and fentanyl.
“The other two individuals are responsible and being prosecuted. They’re responsible for at least, at least seven overdoses that we’re aware of,” said Chronister.
Hargens says she feels bad for all involved.
“Corey Smith is in jail for selling this to Bradley and I feel bad for his mother and I feel sorry for him that it had to be this way. It could have just as easily been the other way around and his mom burying her son and me watching my son go to prison for life,” said Hargens.