Branson man facing federal drug charges | Local News

The case against Brynell began following the death of Jeffery Baker, who suffered an acute fentanyl intoxication overdose in Branson on Sept. 19, 2018. Using a cell phone belonging to Baker, investigators were able to trace text messages arranging the delivery of controlled substances to a pre-paid cell phone subscribed to Ryan Brynell. 

In the following months, two additional overdoses took place in Taney County. Both unnamed victims survived and identified Brynell as the supplier of the heroin or fentanyl they used to overdose, according to the court document. 

Investigators began tracking Brynell’s location via his cellphone on Dec. 12. On Dec. 18 surveillance followed Brynell and his companions to a parking lot in St. Ann and then to a Jack in the Box. Brynell later confessed to investigators that he and the others in his party were taking turns using a substance they had just obtained in the bathroom of the restaurant, the court document stated. 

While returning to southwest Missouri, the vehicle Brynell was occupying was stopped by the Missouri State Highway Patrol along Interstate 44 in Webster County. A K-9 unit was dispatched to perform a sniff search on the vehicle, which led to the discovery of 0.4 grams of suspected heroin inside the vehicle, according to the court document. 

Brynell was detained and during questioning two additional ounces of suspected heroin was discovered on his person. Brynell stated he was able to get high after using a small portion of the substance and believed it to be fentanyl and not heroin, the court document stated.

Two separate tests were conducted on the obtained substances and neither of the test results indicated the substance to be heroin or fentanyl. According to the court affidavit, while the test came back negative, the reporting investigator explained fentanyl mixtures often contain a relatively small percentage of fentanyl, which can be difficult to find within a larger substance.