Mahtomedi man charged with murder in teen’s fentanyl-related death

A Mahtomedi man is now charged with murder in connection to a teen’s death last year.

On May 12, 2021, an Oak Park Heights woman called 911 after finding her 17-year-old daughter unconscious in her bed. There, the teen was pronounced dead and a baggie of pills stamped with “M50,” sometimes called “M boxes,” were found in the teen’s bra.

The pills were sent to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension for testing, which revealed they had 0.1 grams of fentanyl, according to a criminal complaint. The Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the teen’s death as caused by accidental fentanyl toxicity.

Officers talked to multiple people who said the 17-year-old had previously struggled with narcotics and often used “percs.” They also noted that she’d gone to meet Jeremiah Eugene Palmore, who they said had a reputation for providing pills, just two days earlier.

One of the witnesses also showed screenshots of the teen’s conversations with Palmore on Snapchat, which included a discussion about buying three “percs” for $75. According to the complaint, the 17-year-old and three others hung out on May 10, 2021, and they stopped at Palmore’s home at one point. Only the 17-year-old when inside and, after about 10 minutes, came back out and they continued hanging out.

However, one of the three others said the teen didn’t seem herself after leaving Palmore’s place.

When officers made contact with Palmore, he confirmed that the teen had stopped by and asked for “percs” but said he didn’t have any. The complaint notes that Palmore did admit to buying pills that matched the ones found on the teen. Officers then searched his apartment and found a baggie containing pills that matched those found on the teen, and Palmore said the pills belonged to his mother’s boyfriend.

However, DNA found on one of the pills in the 17-year-old’s possession matched Palmore’s DNA, the complaint states.

Palmore, now 20, is charged via warrant with third-degree murder for providing the pills that caused the teen’s death.