19-year-old pleads guilty to murder charges related to teen’s overdose death in 2022

By KSTP

A 19-year-old from Bloomington admitted to selling fentanyl to a teenage girl who later overdosed when he was 17.

Parker Benson pleaded guilty to third-degree murder for the death of the girl on Wednesday.

Court documents show the prosecution is arguing for a sentence of 74 months, which will be decided by a Dakota County judge.

Benson’s sentencing date is set for April 18.

The 15-year-old was found unresponsive and lying face-down in her bed by her mother just before 1 a.m. on April 20, 2022.

The girl’s mother called 911 and began CPR when she found that her daughter was not breathing, but the girl was later pronounced dead from fentanyl toxicity.

Investigators say they found a blue pill beside the girl. After searching her phone, they found messages between her and Benson discussing the sale of pills that he claimed were Percocet.

The four pills, which court documents say were sold for $60 on April 19, 2022, were found to be laced with fentanyl.

Benson reportedly sent a message that night saying “Only take like less than a quarter of it,” and later sent another message after 2 a.m. saying, “They hitting?” but the girl did not respond to either message.