Pair Face Charges In Overdose Death of Northern Virginia Teen

Press Release

Bessy Jimenez Mejia and Liam Conway Distributed Fentanyl that Killed Cayden Foster in 2023

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - A pair of individuals responsible for distributing the fatal dose of fentanyl that killed an 18-year-old high school student in 2023 have been criminally charged with the teen's death.

In separate court proceedings, the United States Attorney's Office charged two people for the January 2023 overdose death of Cayden David Foster, a resident of Centreville, Virginia.

On August 28, 2024, a grand jury sitting in Charlottesville, returned a one-count Indictment charging Bessy Jimenez Mejia, 26, of Harrisonburg, Virginia, with distribution of fentanyl resulting in the death of Foster. If convicted, Mejia faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.

The following day, Liam Conaway, 22, of Harrisonburg, Virginia pled guilty to a one-count Information charging him with distribution of fentanyl.

Mejia was arrested this week and made her initial court appearance.

According to court documents, in January 2023, Foster was an 18-year-old high school student living in Northern Virginia. Foster contacted Conaway, who was then a student at James Madison University (JMU), to purchase fentanyl pills. Conaway and Foster had previously consumed pills together during Conaway's recent academic winter break from JMU.

On January 27, 2023, Foster sent Conaway $105 through Venmo to pay for the drugs. Conaway purchased approximately ten pills from his supplier, Jimenez, in Harrisonburg. The pills Conaway purchased from Jimenez were designed to appear as though they were 30 mg Percocet pills but were in fact counterfeit and contained fentanyl.

Two days later, a friend of Foster's delivered three pills, sourced from Jimenez through Conaway in Harrisonburg to Foster in Northern Virginia.

On January 30, 2023, Foster consumed a portion of one of the pills purchased from Conaway. That night, Foster died from fentanyl poisoning.

First responders arrived at Foster's home the next morning and pronounced Foster dead on arrival.

United States Attorney Christopher R. Kavanaugh and Jarod Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA's Washington Division made the announcement today.

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Fairfax County Police Department investigated the case.

Assistant United States Attorneys Sally J. Sullivan and Melanie A. Smith are prosecuting the case for the United States.

An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Updated October 18, 2024