Local man had same charges dismissed in different case just 3 months ago
Bobby Huel Pastell
Mountain Creek – There have been four charges of death by distribution assessed in Graham County since former governor Roy Cooper signed the bill into law six years ago.
Locally, Bobby Huel Pastell has been on the docket for the charge 50 percent of the time.
The 32-year-old Atoah resident was charged again early Tuesday morning, following a brief investigation by the Graham County Sheriff’s Office into the Dec. 28 death of 35-year-old Peachtree resident Lauren Jane Sams, who was found deceased in a home in the Mountain Creek community of Graham County.
An autopsy was performed the following morning at Harris Regional Hospital in Sylva, which detected the presence of fentanyl in her system. The United States Drug Enforcement Administration says that just 2 mg of fentanyl can be lethal, depending on a person’s body size and tolerance to the substance.
Authorities immediately began researching the circumstances surrounding her death, which Graham County Sheriff Brad Hoxit told The Graham Star on Tuesday led to a search warrant being executed at Pastell’s residence late Monday evening. The evidence collected at the scene gave probable cause for assistant district attorney John S. Hindsman, Jr., to greenlight Pastell being charged with death by distribution – a rap he just defeated in October.
Chief of Detectives Travis Brooks – who spearheaded the investigation – said in the arrest warrant that Pastell allegedly sold Sams the fentanyl. He added that suboxone – which is used to treat opioid dependence – was found in the residence where Sams was discovered, but none was detected in her bloodstream.
Pastell was charged with death by distribution by sale; possession with intent to manufacture/sell/distribute a schedule II controlled substance; and possession of methamphetamine – all felonies.
The latter two charges were tacked on due to authorities discovering four separate bags and one glass vial containing fentanyl and methamphetamine inside Pastell’s residence, according to the arrest warrant.
As of Tuesday afternoon, he was being held on a $750,000 secured bond. He is due to appear in Graham County District Court on Monday, Feb. 10.
Pastell and his wife Danielle Nichole “Nikki” Pastell were both charged with death by distribution in the March 25, 2021 passing of 30-year-old Casey Allen Phillips, who also ingested meth laced with fentanyl. Bobby remained in custody from the time charges were first assessed in July 2021 until they were dismissed Oct. 28, 2024. The District Attorney’s office cited an inability to locate key witnesses in the case as its reason for dropping the case involving Phillips.
A Class C felony, death by distribution can be assessed to a suspect who is believed to have sold cocaine, methamphetamine or opioids to anyone who passes away from using those substances. The charge carries a maximum prison sentence of 40 years.