Columbia man pleads down to manslaughter in 2023 overdose death

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia man pleaded guilty to felonies in a case surrounding a 2023 overdose death.

Chase Rieves pleaded guilty on Monday to first-degree involuntary manslaughter, delivery of a controlled substance and two counts of drug possession. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison. He was previously charged with second-degree murder.

He was one of two people accused in the May 2, 2023, death caused by a fentanyl overdose.

Derek Miltimore pleaded guilty to second-degree drug trafficking, two counts of drug possession and one count of unlawful use of a weapon and was ordered to shock jail time and to complete a drug program.

Police found messages about a drug deal involving Percocet painkillers on the victim's cellphone and traced them back to Miltimore and Rieves, according to court documents in previous reporting. Detectives searched a business on July 10, 2023, in connection with the investigation.