Skaggs’ death linked to staffer
LOS ANGELES — Former Angels employee Eric Kay has been charged by federal authorities in Texas with distributing fentanyl in connection with the overdose death of pitcher Tyler Skaggs, according to court documents.
An affidavit in support of the criminal complaint against Kay filed in U.S. District Court in Fort Worth said the longtime member of the Angels’ media relations department and Skaggs had a “history of narcotic transactions” and that Kay would “distribute these pills to (Skaggs) and others in their place of employment and while they were working.”
Kay voluntarily surrendered to authorities Friday, per court records. The complaint was unsealed Friday. Skaggs, 27, died in his Southlake, Texas, hotel room July 1, 2019, before the Angels were to play the Rangers. He was found on his bed, fully clothed, with no signs of trauma.
A toxicology report by the Tarrant County medical examiner found the opioids fentanyl and oxycodone in his system. The medical examiner listed the cause of death as “alcohol, fentanyl and oxycodone intoxication with terminal aspiration of gastric contents,” meaning he choked on his vomit.
“It was later determined that but for the fentanyl in (Skaggs’) system, (he) would not have died,” the affidavit said. In a statement Friday in response to the charge, the Angels said: “We learned that there was unacceptable behavior inconsistent with our code of conduct, and we took steps to address it.”