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Ohio Teen Andrew Frye Found Dead After Shooting Heroin With His Mother

By John Houck
Published on: 09:34 PST, Apr 8, 2016

An Ohio teen was found dead from an apparent heroin overdose in a Super 8 hotel room. Andrew Frye, 16, was discovered shirtless in a chair surrounded by illegal drugs, syringes, and other drug paraphernalia.

As reported by the Washington Post, both Andrew Frye’s mother and grandmother are being charged for various crimes related to the teen’s death. Investigators believe he was doing drugs with his mother in the room. Allegedly, the grandmother purchased the drugs for them.

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While the medical examiner has not officially ruled the teen’s death was caused by a heroin overdose, initial tests indicate Frye’s system contained the illegal drug and traces of the prescription painkiller fentanyl. The teen was a diabetic and was known to abuse alcohol, heroin, and various other drugs prior to his death.

An official autopsy report indicating how Frye died has not yet been completed.

Andrew’s mother, Heather Frye, is currently charged with involuntary manslaughter, child endangering, and tampering with evidence. Her mother, Brenda Frye, is facing charges of involuntary manslaughter, corrupting a minor with drugs, and trafficking.

Both Heather and Brenda have a long history of drug-related offenses, according to local court records.

Less than two weeks prior to her son’s death, Akron Police encountered Heather during a traffic stop, who was driving with an invalid license. The police ended up searching the vehicle and found items related to drug use, including two glass meth pipes and burnt aluminum foil in the glove compartment.

On Wednesday night, police were called to a Super 8 Motel just before 7 p.m. The caller, Heather’s friend Jessica Irons, told the dispatcher she found Andrew unresponsive.

When sheriff deputies arrived at the hotel, Andrew had apparently been dead for quite some time. Officers also noted that others who were with the teen in the room attempted to hide drugs and needles.

“The evidence in this case turns my stomach,” Summit County Sheriff Steve Barry said.

After the gruesome discovery, Heather told police that she, Andrew and Irons went to the hotel to use the swimming pool, but decided to do heroin instead. According to the police report, Heather and Andrew were initially going to buy the heroin, but Brenda Frye ended up obtaining for them through another individual.

Heather stated that Andrew went into a bathroom to shoot the heroin because he didn’t like her to watch. Shortly thereafter, the group fell asleep. Irons woke up around 6:45 p.m. and found Andrew unresponsive. Authorities pronounced the Ohio teen dead at the scene.

After the initial investigation by local police, members of the U.S. Marshals Task Force arrested Heather Frye and Jessica Irons early Friday in Stow, Ohio, and are holding them accountable for Andrew’s death.

“Our task force is seeing a growing number of heroin related deaths, and in turn warrants being issued to our team to find those responsible for these deaths,” said U.S. Marshal Pete Elliott. “This is a sad story, where a 16-year-old has lost his life, but justice must be served for those that played a role in the young man’s death.”

Irons has been charged with tampering with evidence and drug possession in relation to the incident. Donald Callaghan, who lived with the grandmother, was charged with heroin possession.

The Ohio teen was a registered student in the Akron Public School System, but had been attending online classes for the last year. His official school was East Community Learning Center and would have received a diploma from this school if he had graduated.

Prior to Akron, Andrew Frye attended Green Local Schools. Both school districts are making counseling services available to students affected by the tragedy.

[Photo by Christopher Capozziello/Getty Images]

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