Bucks Co. Man Sold Fentanyl Dose That Killed 25-Year-Old Woman: DA

BENSALEM, PA — A Bensalem man has been charged with drug delivery resulting in death after he sold a fatal fentanyl dose to a 25-year-old woman over the summer, authorities said.

Matthew Derby Lavender, 25, walked the woman, 25-year-old Nikki Lee Silva, into Philadelphia's Kensingston section, according to the Bucks County District Attorney's Office.

The pair met a street dealer who sold the Lavender the drugs, who in turn sold them to Silva, police said.

Silva took the drugs on the night of July 2 at a residence on the 400 block of Main Street in Tullytown, where she was found in dead by police following a cardiac arrest.

Three used and three unused baggies of fentanyl were found near her body, police said.

An investigation led police to Lavender, who police said admitted during an Aug. 20 interview that he brought Silva to Kensington to buy the drugs.

"They're all fentanyl. There is no heroin no more," Lavender told police, when they asked what drugs had been purchased.

According to her obituary, Silva, a Staten Island native, loved listening to music and was just learning to play guitar. "She loved being with her family and she took great pride in being an aunt," the obituary notes.

Lavender was formally charged on Thursday. He also faces counts of involuntary manslaughter and related drug charges. A preliminary hearing is forthcoming.