Arrest Warrants Issued in Sauk Rapids Teen's Fatal Overdose Case

FOLEY (WJON News) -- Arrest warrants have been issued for two people charged in a fatal drug overdose case.

A Benton County judge issued the warrants for 38-year-old Crystal Swenson and 33-year-old Fox Bellanger. The two are accused of selling cocaine laced with fentanyl to Swenson's 16-year-old son.

Crystal Swenson - Benton County Jail

A third suspect in the case, 48-year-old Anthony Costello, has pleaded guilty to one count of 2nd-degree manslaughter. He was sentenced to four years in prison.

Swenson and Bellanger were scheduled to appear in court last week, but both failed to appear.

Swenson pleaded guilty to manslaughter in April and failed to appear for her sentencing last Thursday. Bellanger was set for a pre-trial hearing that same day.

Sauk Rapids Police were dispatched to the 300 block of 10th Avenue North on March 2nd, 2024, on a report of an unresponsive person. Officers discovered the teenage boy lying on the floor outside a bathroom and not breathing. Officers tried life-saving efforts, but say the boy was cold to the touch and appeared to have been dead for some time.

Costello told police that he had previously been in a romantic relationship with the boy's mother, and he and the boy had snorted cocaine prior to his death.

The charges further allege the boy had made plans with his mother and Bellanger to buy cocaine from them.

Fox Bellanger - Benton County Jail

Costello said when the boy returned to Costello's Sauk Rapids home at around 5:30 a.m., the two snorted cocaine together.

Records show Costello found the boy at around 9:30 a.m., making gurgling noises while on the floor, and was unresponsive. Costello said, despite pouring water on him and trying to get him to stand up, the victim wouldn't wake up, so he dragged him down the stairs and left the boy there so he could go to bed.