Pair Charged With Manslaughter in Heroin Overdose

Two Paterson men who allegedly sold a lethal dose of heroin to a 22-year-old from Allendale last month were arrested Friday on second-degree manslaughter charges, Bergen County Prosecutor John Molinelli announced in a release Friday.

Brendan Cole, 22, was found unresponsive in his bedroom on Jan. 4, Molinelli said. He was pronounced dead at the scene and investigators later determined he died from a heroin overdose, Molinelli said.

According to cops, Cole had purchased heroin from Timothy Volpe, 20, and Kaleik Easton, 19, both of Paterson, the night before his death.

“It is alleged that this sale of heroin to the victim by these two individuals directly led to the overdose and death,” Molinelli said.

After his death, police arranged an undercover heroin deal in which officers purchased 100 bags of heroin in Paramus from Volpe and Easton, and an associate of theirs, Molinelli said. They were immediately charged with distribution of heroin and remanded to the Bergen County Jail, authorities said. After an investigation into Cole’s death, Volpe and Easton were also charged with strict liability for drug induced death and second-degree manslaughter, Molinelli said.

Both men have been remanded to the Bergen County Jail in lieu of $500,000 bail each, authorities said. The investigation is ongoing, they said.

According to his obituary, Cole was born in Englewood and lived in Midland Park before moving to Allendale 15 years ago. He was a 2009 Bergen Catholic grad and a 2013 University of Richmond graduate. His funeral was held last month in Wyckoff. 

In his obituary, family members said he was “not with us for nearly long enough,” and should be remembered for touching the lives of those around him.