Photo: Edward Caceres
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY — Headlines were made on March 1 when no less than nine UCSB male students were discovered suffering from profound symptoms of opioid overdose at a residence in Isla Vista, the student-populated community immediately adjacent to the university campus.
After all nine victims were transported to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department Special Investigations Bureau detectives began the hunt for those responsible for providing the suspect drugs to the college boys. According to SBSD Public Information Officer Kelly Hoover, the victims had “ingested an unknown amount of alcohol and a prescription pain reliever believed to be Oxycontin.”
Omar Coulibaly
Five days later, on March 6th, detectives “discovered evidence” indicating that 24-year-old Isla Vista resident Edward Caceres—already on probation for a prior drug-related conviction—was their prime suspect.
That same afternoon, the cops conducted an unannounced “probation search” of Caceres’ apartment and found him doing his best to hide and evade detection. That kind of behavior, hardly endearing in the eyes of investigators and uniformed deputies, only caused more suspicion.
Minutes later, Caceres’ roommate—23-year-old Omar Coulibaly—was found in another room of the dwelling unit. Both young men were detained while deputies continued their search… and discovered “approximately 185 Xanax pills and more than a pound of processed marijuana.”
It was quickly determined that Caceres was indeed the individual responsible for providing the controlled substance to the nine overdose victims, whereupon he was transported to Santa Barbara County Jail and booked on a charge of sales of a controlled substance, with his bail set at $250,000.
For his part, Coulibaly was booked on charge of possession of marijuana for sales and was then “released on a citation.”
Photos: Courtesy Santa Barbara County Jail Booking
