A 28-year-old Ponchatoula man has been indicted on a second-degree murder charge after authorities say fentanyl he sold led to the January death of a 31-year-old Hammond woman. Investigators identified the suspect as Silas Latino and the victim as Katheryn Austin. An autopsy later showed what officials described as an overwhelming amount of fentanyl in Austin’s system.
Deputies found Austin unresponsive in a Hammond-area home in January, and efforts to revive her were unsuccessful, according to WWLTV. The station reports the coroner ruled her death a fentanyl overdose, triggering a broader, multi-agency investigation.
Investigation and task force work
According to the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's Office, the DEA's Fentanyl Overdose Response Team (FORT), Hammond Police and other partners tracked the pills back through the supply chain and identified Latino as the seller tied to Austin’s death. "Fentanyl is a ruthless poison," DEA Special Agent John P. Scott said in the sheriff's release, noting the cooperative work among agencies.
Local prosecutions have followed similar cases
Prosecutors and federal task forces on the Northshore have increasingly gone after dealers following fatal overdoses, with several recent investigations ending in indictments and federal plea deals. In a previous Tangipahoa case, a man was indicted after a fentanyl-linked death, part of a pattern of law enforcement treating overdose deaths as potential homicide scenes.
What comes next
Latino was already behind bars in May after authorities said he violated probation in an earlier Ponchatoula drug case, the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's Office says. The sheriff's post did not list an arraignment or upcoming court date.
The sheriff's release also points people to TPSO's Operation Angel program, which offers those struggling with addiction a way to seek treatment at a TPSO office without fear of arrest and includes a helpline number. Officials are asking anyone with information about the investigation to contact local law enforcement.
