(La Porte County, IN) - A Michigan City man could face a lengthy prison sentence on allegations he provided the drugs that caused an overdose death.

 

Michael Stalling, Jr., 28, is charged in LaPorte Superior Court 1 with dealing in a controlled substance causing death, a Level 1 felony punishable by a 20 to 40 year sentence.

 

According to the charging information, he sold three pills containing fentanyl to 22-year old Brayden Hayman in December of 2024. 

 

After returning to his LaPorte area home, Hayman, who had twice been in a drug rehabilitation program, was found dead the next morning by his father in a basement bedroom, authorities said.

 

The LaPorte County Coroner’s Office ruled cause of death as an accidental overdose based on a blood test taken during the autopsy that found fentanyl in the victim’s system.

 

Nearly a year later, authorities said evidence such as cell phone records led detectives to Stalling, who admitted selling Hayman fentanyl in small amounts in the past and on the night prior to his death.

 

According to the charging information, Stalling told police he sold Hayman three pills that night for $40 but they did not contain enough fentanyl to kill him. 

 

The investigation also shows Hayman had a history of drug use since high school and his parents believed he had been sober in recent months after he obtained employment.

 

It’s believed Hayman purchased the drugs from Stalling after leaving to pick-up a pizza for a football game he and his father planned to watch on TV together.  His father told investigators his son wasn’t gone long but later that night he began falling asleep and went to bed.

 

Stalling was taken into custody July 22 on a warrant issued two days prior to his arrest.  He was being held in the LaPorte County Jail on $100,000 bond.