2 overdose deaths in same neighborhood

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Two young men were found dead from overdoses less than an hour from each other. They lived less than half a mile from each other. Gwinnett County Police are trying to find out from where the drug came from.

Kathy Abraham woke up Friday morning to find her 19-year-old son, Joe, dead.

“My husband was yelling 'this is bad, this is bad!' and I didn't know what I was going to find when I walked in the room and I checked for his pulse and he was gone. I miss him so much, I loved him so much,” said Abraham.

Gwinnett County Police said just down the street in the Turtle Creek subdivision, another family found their 18-year-old son dead from an overdose.

“There's a strong possibility the same seller provided the substance to both victims,” said Gwinnett County Police Cpl. Michele Pihera.

Police have not yet identified the substance. Investigators said they found similar drug packaging at both homes, a white sheet of paper folded into multiple squares to form an envelope. Police said it is extremely important that they identify where the drug came from before others take it.

“It's very possible the seller doesn't even know that his substance is providing fatal consequences. We need to get it out of his hands and get it off the streets of Gwinnett County,” said Cpl. Pihera.

Abraham said the two young men knew each other, but does not know if they were recently together. She said her son had battled depression and substance abuse, but he had dreams and plans that he was working toward. Now, Abraham said his life will be a lesson for others. A lesson that drugs are real, they are in our communities, and they can kill.

“I didn't think my son would be a statistic, I thought we could help him through it, and I don't want his life to go for naught, I want to do something to save other kids,” said Abraham.

Abraham said she had just gone to a drug summit held in Gwinnett County the night before to educate herself. She never imagined less than 12 hours later her son would overdose.

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