Oct 16, 2014 3 min read

A Monongahela man was arrested last week for allegedly helping his friend inject himself with heroin, causing his death.

Terrence Lee Kelly, 42, of 209 Ninth St., was arrested by Southwest Regional police in connection with the Sept. 4, 2013, drug overdose death of Brian Johnson, 41, of 323 Green St., Belle Vernon.

Police Chief John Hartman said Kelly told police Johnson was reluctant to inject himself with the drug, so he helped him. Hartman said Johnson was not a regular heroin user.

Police were called to the home for a report a person had died, When police arrived, they found Kelly lying at the foot of a bed in the basement. Johnson’s body also was on the bed.

Police later learned Kelly had gone into a North Belle Vernon bar earlier that afternoon and said to an acquaintance “Hey, guess who died today? Opie.” When the other man asked Kelly if he meant Johnson, Kelly responded he did. He also told the other man he did not call police. The acquaintance then told police in North Belle Vernon what he heard and Southwest police were in turn notified.

Kelly also reportedly told another person about an hour earlier Johnson was dead and he had “shot him up.”

Kelly told police he and Johnson had gone to North Belle Vernon earlier that morning to buy heroin from a dealer known to sell “really strong” heroin. They then reportedly returned to the Green Street home. He told police he injected Johnson with two bags before shooting two into his own arm before Kelly left the house. When Kelly returned, he found Johnson unresponsive.

The Monongahela man reportedly flushed the empty stamp bags and drug items down the toilet. He told police he threw the syringe in the Monongahela River. An autopsy revealed Johnson died of acute drug toxicity from a combination of heroin, cocaine, Xanax, morphine and Zypreza.

Hartman said police met with the Fayette County district attorney’s office before getting approval to file charges in the case, including the relatively new charge of drug delivery resulting in death.

Kelly was arraigned before District Judge Richard Kasunic on that charge in addition to charges of aggravated assault, involuntary manslaughter, possession with intent to delver, reckless endangerment, tampering with evidence and obstruction of the administration of law. He was placed in Fayette County jail on $150,000 bond. A preliminary hearing is set for Thursday before Kasunic.