LOCAL RESIDENTS CHARGED IN FEDERAL DRUG CASE - INDICTED BY GRAND JURY

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE:

St. Louis - The United States Marshals Service today arrested Megan Lowe, 41, of Bevier, Missouri and Kimberly Ann Basler, 44, of Atlanta, Missouri on Federal drug charges. The Indictment against Lowe and Basler was unsealed following their arrests. It alleges that on October 5, 2018, Lowe and Basler distributed controlled substances, and that two people, identified only as E.O. and M.J., ingested those drugs. M.J., of Columbia, Missouri, died as a result, and E.O., also of Columbia, became seriously ill. Lowe and Basler are each charged with two counts – one count of Distribution of a Controlled Substance Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury and one count of Distribution of a Controlled Substance Resulting in Death. They are expected to make their initial appearances in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri in St. Louis on August 1, 2019.

The case was investigated by multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Columbia, Missouri Police Department and the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

Lowe and Basler face mandatory minimum sentences of 20 years on each of the two counts with which they are charged. These sentences could be ordered to be served concurrently (at the same time) or consecutively (one after the other).

Charges set forth in the Indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

HOME PRESS ORIGINAL STORY:

ST. LOUIS -- In the Eastern District Court of Missouri, both Megan Lowe (41 of Bevier) and Kimberly Basler (44 of Atlanta) were indicted in a federal drug case. In two separate instances, listed in official Federal Indictment Papers, (allegedly) Lowe and Basler "knowingly and intentionally distributed a controlled substance" to two separate individuals in which one individual suffered "serious bodily injury as a result of the use of such controlled substance" and the other individual ingested the "controlled substance distributed by defendants (Lowe and Basler) and died as a result of the use of such controlled substance." The names of the victims as of now, are only known to the Grand Jury.

Both Lowe and Basler are set to appear initially in federal court Thursday in St. Louis.