Okaloosa Deputies Charge Teen With 16-Year-Old’s Drug Overdose Death

In Brief:

A 17-year-old from Fort Walton Beach is charged with aggravated manslaughter after allegedly supplying fentanyl-laced pills that led to a 16-year-old girl’s death.
Surveillance footage and phone data reportedly connected the suspect, Sa Qualen Grant, to the victim despite his initial denial of involvement.
The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office emphasizes the dangers of fentanyl as they continue their investigation into the fatal overdose.

FORT WALTON BEACH, FL — A 17-year-old from Fort Walton Beach has been charged with Homicide-Aggravated Manslaughter of a Child following a fatal overdose that claimed the life of a 16-year-old girl.

Okaloosa Sheriff’s Deputies arrested Sa Qualen Grant February 11th after an investigation linked him to providing the fentanyl-laced pills that caused the victim’s death.

Deputies responded to a call at a home on Miller Street in Fort Walton Beach where the young victim was found dead in her bedroom.

During their investigation, deputies discovered several pills at the scene, which they say were later confirmed to contain fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid responsible for a growing number of overdose deaths across the country.

OCSO investigators say they pieced together evidence indicating that the victim had met with Grant to purchase the pills. The investigators claim to have surveillance footage from CCTV cameras which allegedly captured the hand-to-hand transaction between the two. Despite Grant’s initial denial of any connection to the victim, Okaloosa Sheriff’s Office investigators say both video evidence and data from his phone contradicted his statements.

According to the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office, The Medical Examiner’s report concluded that the cause of death was fentanyl intoxication, with lab results confirming the presence of both fentanyl and norfentanyl in the victim’s blood.

These findings led to Grant’s arrest and the serious charge of aggravated manslaughter.

Grant remains in custody as the investigation continues, and the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office is urging the community to remain vigilant against the dangers posed by illicit drugs.