DELAWARE COUNTY, Ind. — A Muncie man has been found guilty of contributing to a Delaware County resident’s overdose death after allegedly selling controlled substances.

The Yorktown Police Department began investigating after a Delaware County resident died of an overdose death in Jan. 2019.

Yorktown PD arrested Joel David West one month later on Feb. 21 and charged him with Dealing in a Controlled Substance Resulting in Death, a Level 1 felony.

West was found guilty Thursday in Delaware Circuit Court 3 of Dealing in a Controlled Substance Resulting in Death. His jury trial had started on Monday.

West is set to be sentenced on Aug. 28.

The Dealing in a Controlled Substance Resulting in Death statute was passed by the Indiana General Assembly in 2018 to crack down on dealers who sell drugs to people who end up fatally overdosing.

The statute enables prosecutors to pursue charges for any person who “knowingly or intentionally manufactures or delivers a controlled substance.”