Woman charged in connection with fatal drug overdose in Hagerstown | Local News

Hagerstown police wrote in court documents that a Hagerstown married couple overdosed on a mixture of heroin that Hawkins sold them on Oct. 4.

Police said officers found the wife unresponsive after they were called to the couple’s home in the 900 block of Salem Ave.

The wife was taken to Meritus Medical Center, where she was treated and given a cab voucher to return home. A short time later, the wife called police and said she found her husband dead in a second floor bedroom.

Police said they found drug paraphernalia in the bedroom and a hypodermic syringe under the husband’s right shoulder, which led investigators to believe he died of an overdose.

Authorities did not release the names of the victims.

During a hearing Friday in Washington County District Court, retired Judge Oliver J. Cejka Jr. ordered that Hawkins continue to be held without bond at the Washington County Detention Center.

“These are extremely serious charges,” he said.

Washington County Assistant State’s Attorney Cyrus Jaghoory told Cejka that Hawkins could be indicted later on a manslaughter charge.

The wife in the couple told police that she and her husband went to the Jonathan Street neighborhood to buy drugs and saw a woman who appeared to be homeless standing on the street.

The documents said the couple asked her if she knew where they could buy crack cocaine. The woman then got in their vehicle, and the three drove to an ATM at a convenience store on Salem Avenue to withdraw $100.

They later returned to Jonathan Street and parked in Harman Alley, where the woman took the money, left the vehicle and came back with a tan powdered substance.

The woman warned the couple to be careful because the drugs were very strong, the documents said.

The wife told police that she and her husband then drove home, where she overdosed after snorting some of the powder.

On Oct. 8, police visited the convenience store and obtained surveillance video footage, which showed the wife and the woman standing by the ATM.

Investigators pulled still photos of the woman from the surveillance footage and distributed them to the Hagerstown Police Department and Washington County Sheriff’s Office.

On Nov. 16, the sheriff’s office sent an email with an attached photo of Hawkins, who was wanted on a warrant for an unrelated crime.

The documents said an investigator in the overdose case immediately recognized Hawkins as the woman who was with the wife on the surveillance footage from the convenience store.

A warrant for Hawkins’ arrest was issued on Nov. 21.

Police said she was picked up Thursday in Chambersburg, Pa.