OKLAHOMA CITY – A woman has pleaded guilty to murder in connection to the death of an Oklahoma City man who died after he was given a Fentanyl patch.
On Oct. 24, 2017, 22-year-old Donte Sanders was found unresponsive.
His girlfriend at the time, Kylie King, told News 4 it happened after a small get-together to celebrate a friend’s birthday.
Sanders and a handful of others spent the evening at King’s grandmother’s apartment.
King said Sanders was experiencing pain in his hand from an injury a week before, and he insisted ibuprofen wasn’t cutting it.
Police say King’s grandmother, Brenda Merkel, then gave Sanders a Fentanyl patch.
King said she warned him not to do it because his body might not be able to handle it, but he ignored it.
“I remember him going in there to her and telling her it was making him feel weird,” King said. “And she told him to put it back on and go in there and he would be fine.”
But when King woke the next morning, she said she found Sanders unresponsive.
“I thought it was a dream,” King said. “And I shook him and rubbed my hand down his face and on my hand was his vomit and foam.”
That’s when she said she called 911 and Sanders’ family.
Officials say Sanders died of an overdose as a result of using the patch.
The Oklahoma County District Attorney charged Merkel, who previously went by the name Brenda Buerger, in connection to the death.
According to online court records, Merkel pleaded guilty to a charge of second-degree murder on Wednesday.
She was sentenced to 10 years in prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release.
Court records show Merkel previously served time in prison for possession of a controlled substance and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon