Dai von T. Coram
A judge gave a self-confessed drug dealer linked to multiple drug overdose cases at the Bartholomew County Jail the maximum sentence.
Dai von T. Coram, 28, of 1922 Indiana Ave., was ordered in Bartholomew Superior Court 1 to serve a total of 15 years with the Indiana Department of Correction.
Judge James Worton ordered that Coram serve 12 years on a Level 2 felony of dealing in methamphetamine for a case filed March 5, 2024. In exchange for his guilty plea, the state agreed to drop an identical drug dealing charge, as well as two counts of possession of methamphetamine.
In a separate case, the judge also ordered that Coram serve three years after the defendant pleaded guilty to dealing in a narcotic as a Level 4 felony. The prosecution agreed to drop one count of trafficking with an inmate and one count of obstruction of justice from the second case.
While the two sentences are consecutive with no time suspended, the judge will ask the prison to allow Coram to join a Recovery While Incarcerated (RWI) program for treatment of drug addictions.
Under normal circumstances, Coram could have received up to 42 years in prison for the charges he admits committing. But Worton agreed to the arrangement announced by the defense and prosecution during an Aug. 26 court hearing that limited prison time to 15 years.
On Feb. 26, four possible overdoses occurred at about the same time in the jail’s “M Block.”
One inmate appeared to be unconscious and had a very light pulse, court documents state. Three rounds of naloxone were administered before the inmate regained consciousness and was transported to Columbus Regional Hospital for further medical care.
Shortly after this incident, another “M Block” inmate began experiencing overdose symptoms and was also taken to the emergency room, receiving naloxone on the way to the hospital, court documents state. Two other inmates in the same area of the jail also experienced overdose symptoms and were transported to the emergency room.
Jail staff reported the only new inmate who had arrived in “M Block” was Coram.
Investigators say they learned Coram had placed the heroin/fentanyl in pieces of aluminum foil hidden between the cheeks of his buttocks. The body scan did not show the foil.
When the overdoses occurred, the defendant told investigators he became frightened and flushed the remaining drugs down the toilet, court documents state.
Coram was also treated at Columbus Regional Hospital after showing signs of being under the influence of his narcotics before he was sent back to jail.
