Democratic megadonor Ed Buck on Thursday was charged with a federal drug trafficking offense for injecting a 26-year-old man with methamphetamine at his West Hollywood apartment in 2017, resulting in death, Fox News reports.
Buck, a political activist and wealthy donor, was arrested Tuesday after a 37-year-old man suffered a meth overdose in his apartment on Sept. 11, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office.
The victim survived, though the incident marked the third time in two years where a man overdosed on meth at Buck’s residence.
The other two victims, 26-year-old Gemmel Moore and 55-year-old Timothy Dean, both died.
In filing charges against Buck on Tuesday, prosecutors depicted him as a "violent, dangerous sexual predator” and allege he used drugs, money, and shelter as bait to lure men struggling with addiction and homelessness into his apartment, where he "manipulates them into participating in his sexual fetishes," according to court documents.
Buck’s attorney, Seymour Amster, told reporters at the courthouse Thursday that his client would fight the case vigorously.
"This is a case that there have been a lot of activists' interaction on it, thinking that charges should have been brought before there were," Amster said.
"We will fight this case vigorously, but I'm not so sure legitimately there was ever enough evidence to ever cause this case to be filed until recently," he added.
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