Greene County inmate charged with murder in fentanyl death of cellmate
A current Greene County jail inmate was charged Tuesday with felony murder related to the death of his fellow inmate in March of 2022.
According to court records, Austin Larue was found deceased in his bed on the morning of March 13, 2022. Prosecutors believe security footage gives some explanation to how that happened.
A probable cause statement filed Tuesday says footage from the night before shows Lorenzo Bloomfield putting a wide powder substance into two pieces of paper and rolled into balls. The document says Bloomfield gives one ball to Larue and puts the other under his own mattress. The two then go to the restroom/shower area where they have a conversation. The footage then shows them return and Larue put the paper under his mattress.
Later overnight, footage shows Larue hidden behind a shirt and ladder in his bunk. He later goes to the restroom and appears to be seen snorting water up his nose and itching excessively. He then returns to his bunk and is seen making movements until just before 1 a.m. A third unnamed inmate is seen checking on Larue occasionally and later told investigators that Larue was snoring uncharacteristically loud.
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Documents say that when lights went on for breakfast at 4:30 a.m., the third inmate checks on Larue and when he does not get a response, he calls for guards to come. While lifesaving measures are being performed on Larue, footage shows Broomfield retrieve the paper from his bed and leave for the restroom. Footage shows he flushes something down the toilet, according to records.
Documents say that in an interview two days later, Broomfield admitted to giving narcotics to Larue, but that he was giving him cocaine he received from another inmate. But officers say they have no footage of such an interaction taking place. Others told investigators that Broomfield gave fentanyl to Larue and that both of them knew what it was.
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The following week, the state forensic department determined the cause of death to be an accidental overdose and that Larue had fentanyl in his system.
Broomfield was charged Tuesday with second degree murder, felony murder, which is a charge in which prosecutors say a person died because of a different felony the defendant was committing. As such, Broomfield was also charged with delivery of a controlled substance and tampering with physical evidence in a felony.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Greene County inmate charged with murder in fentanyl death of cellmate
