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 Cameron James Pettit, 28, is accused of delivering the pills to
Miller, an ex-boyfriend of pop star Ariana Grande, early on the
morning of Sept. 5, 2018.
Miller, the 26-year-old musician and producer born Malcolm James
McCormick, was found unresponsive in his home in the Studio City
neighborhood of Los Angeles on Sept. 7 and later pronounced dead
at the scene.
An autopsy determined that Miller died of an accidental overdose
of a mixed drug toxicity involving fentanyl, cocaine and
alcohol.
Pettit was ordered held without bond during a brief hearing in
U.S. District Court in Los Angeles and waived his right to a
preliminary hearing in the case. His court-appointed attorney,
Charles Snyder, declined to comment when reached by Reuters.
"We've seen too many tragic deaths," Assistant U.S. Attorney
Matthew Jacobs said outside court. "People should know that if
they consume black market opioid pills they are playing Russian
roulette. It could be a genuine pill or it could be laced with
something that will leave them dead on the spot."
According to the criminal complaint, Pettit delivered the 10
blue pills to Miller at a Hollywood recording studio shortly
before 2:30 a.m. on Sept. 5, along with Xanax and cocaine.
Because Pettit was slow in arriving with the drugs, Miller
contacted a madam he knew from previous transactions, the court
papers said, and she sent a prostitute to the studio with
oxycodone, Xanax, Adderall, hydrocodone and cocaine.
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Prosecutors say forensic analysis and circumstantial evidence show
that it was the pills brought by Pettit that contained fentanyl.
Neither the prostitute nor the madam, who according to the court
documents are associated with Pettit, have been charged in the case.
Pettit can be seen with the madam in pictures posted to her
Instagram account.
Representatives for Miller declined to comment.
Pittsburgh-born Miller, who first gained a following while still a
teenager and topped the Billboard album charts with his 2011 debut
album, "Blue Side Park," spoke openly of his drug addiction in
interviews and in song lyrics.
He was also a sought-after producer, using the pseudonym Larry
Fisherman, and was posthumously nominated for a Grammy for his final
album, "Swimming."
Miller and Grande, 26, dated for about two years, breaking up in May
2018. The Grammy-winning pop star sings affectionately about him in
her hit single "thank u, next," referring to him by his given name
Malcolm.
Grande's representatives could not be reached for comment on
Wednesday.
(Reporting by Dan Whitcomb, Editing by Cynthia Osterman and Grant
McCool)
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