Crime Stoppers of Michigan Announce Reward for Information on Heroin Supplier

ST. CLAIR SHORES, MI — Matthew Vernier, 18, of White Lake Township fatally overdosed on fentanyl-laced heroin last year. This past Thursday, Crime Stoppers of Michigan announced they're offering a $1,000 reward for anyone who provides information about a drug supplier and a drug house in the area.

Detroit police are currently investigating the case and searching for additional information.

Vernier died Aug. 12, 2015, two months after he graduated from Lake Shore High School. At around 11:45 p.m. that night, two young men who were with Vernier were seen dragging his body across the CVS parking lot at Hall and Hayes roads in Sterling Heights, Macomb Daily reports.

Police believe Vernier purchased the heroin at a drug house on Detroit's east side, in the general vicinity of Seven Mile and Kelly roads.

“We’re asking for somebody to step up and contact Crime Stoppers. All we’re asking for is to tell Crime Stoppers what you know and help us get justice for my son Matthew," Vernier's father, Norman Vernier said, according to Macomb Daily. "I know there’s people who know something because my son had a lot of friends, he knew a lot of people. Somebody knows.”

Lori Vernier, Matthew Vernier's mother, said Matthew wasn't a regular heroin user and might have tried it for the first time the night he overdosed.

“He wanted to see everybody happy. He loved people. He had a big heart,” Lori Vernier said, according to Macomb Daily.

Matthew Vernier worked two jobs at the time of his overdose. He planned to attend Macomb Community College in the fall of 2015 to study business.

The school held a vigil for Matthew Vernier after he died, which more than 200 people attended, Macomb Daily reports.

The Vernier parents also said that based on police investigation, the two men that Matthew Vernier was with drove him to Detroit and after he overdosed, drove him to Sterling Heights. They didn't seek any medical attention for Matthew Vernier.

“How many hospitals did they pass on their way to Sterling Heights?” Lori Vernier said, according to Macomb Daily.

Andrew Justice and Joshua Conley of Oakland County are each charged with a misdemeanor of illegally carrying away a dead body. They're scheduled for trial in Nov. in 41A District Court in Sterling Heights, according to Macomb Daily.

“These two people did not help my son when he was in absolute, dire need of medical attention,” Norman Vernier said.

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock