Santa Barbara man arrested on murder charges for supplying fentanyl leading to death

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – A Santa Barbara man was arrested on Sept. 1 for the murder of a 30-year-old man, months after his cause of death was determined to be acute fentanyl intoxication, according to the Santa Barbara Police Department.

Officers were dispatched to the 100 block of State Street for a report of a found body on April 29 and discovered the 30-year-old man deceased with narcotics and drug paraphernalia in his possession, according to Sgt. Ethan Ragsdale.

Officers and Santa Barbara County District Attorney's Office investigators investigated the death and identified Dillon James Joseph Johnson, 34 of Santa Barbara, as the suspect who had distributed the decedent the fentanyl that caused his death.

A Santa Barbara County judge authorized a search warrant for the case, and the police department believes that Johnson directly supplied the fentanyl to the victim, Ragsdale said.

Detectives served the search warrant and arrested Johnson on the 7100 block of Hollister Avenue on Sept. 1. A search after the arrest revealed large quantities of fentanyl and other narcotics that "constitute possession with the intent to distribute," Ragsdale said.

He was booked at the Santa Barbara County Jail for murder and numerous felony narcotic violations. His bail was set at $1 million. He was arraigned on Tuesday.