A Palm Coast drug dealer has been indicted on a first-degree murder charge after a months-long investigation into a fatal fentanyl overdose earlier this year, according to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
On February 27, deputies responded to an overdose at The Palms at Town Center apartment complex, where they found 42-year-old Brian Seaverns unresponsive and not breathing. Paramedics with Flagler County Fire Rescue pronounced him dead at the scene.
Detectives with the Major Case Unit interviewed the 911 caller, a family member who found Seaverns after waking up from a nap. The caller said they had seen Seaverns inject what they believed was fentanyl earlier in the day. Inside the home, investigators found several needles, smoking pipes and a bottle cap containing a white powder that later tested positive for fentanyl. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement confirmed the substance was fentanyl.
As detectives pieced together Seaverns’ movements, they learned he had purchased fentanyl the day before his death at a motel in Daytona Beach. The suspected dealer was identified as 38-year-old Joseph Robert Bourke Jr. of Palm Coast.
Detectives worked with the Volusia Bureau of Investigation to obtain a search warrant for the motel room. During the search, deputies found Bourke with three other individuals, along with fentanyl, methamphetamine, drug paraphernalia and Bourke’s cellphone. Volusia deputies arrested all four on narcotics-related charges.
The overdose investigation continued with help from multiple FCSO units, the State Attorney’s Office and Florida’s 7th Circuit Homicide Unit. Investigators reviewed surveillance footage and electronic communications, which they say showed Bourke had supplied Seaverns with fentanyl multiple times, including the day before his death.
On May 13, the district medical examiner ruled Seaverns’ death was caused solely by fentanyl toxicity. Detectives concluded that Bourke knowingly provided the fentanyl that killed him.
On November 7, a Flagler County grand jury indicted Bourke on a charge of first-degree murder by unlawful distribution of a controlled substance.
“When a poison peddler kills someone by selling them a fatal dose, they are committing murder under Florida law,” Sheriff Rick Staly said. “These are difficult cases, but we are committed to holding poison peddlers accountable. This dirtbag needs to go to prison for a very long time.”
Bourke was served the indictment at the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility after being transported from Tomoka Correctional Institution, where he is already serving time on unrelated charges. He is being held without bond.
According to the sheriff’s office, Bourke has been arrested 31 times, including 24 arrests by FCSO, and has prior convictions for felony and misdemeanor offenses ranging from drug charges to robbery and aggravated assault.
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