KC Man Pleads Guilty to Three Fentanyl Overdose Deaths

Press Release

Faces 20 Years to Life in Prison for Drug-Trafficking Conspiracy

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - A Kansas City, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to distributing fentanyl, which resulted in three overdose deaths in Belton and Raymore, Mo., as part of a drug-trafficking conspiracy.

Tiger Dean Draggoo, 24, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Roseann A. Ketchmark to one count of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and three counts of distributing fentanyl resulting in death.

By pleading guilty today, Draggoo admitted that he distributed fentanyl on Sept. 3, 2022, the use of which caused the death of another person. Draggoo admitted that he distributed fentanyl between Aug. 22 and Sept. 13, 2022, the use of which caused the death of another person. Draggoo admitted that he distributed fentanyl between Dec. 7 and 20, 2022, the use of which caused the death of another person.

Draggoo also admitted that the government's evidence of the total amount of drugs he is responsible for distributing or possessing is at least 22,364 pills that contained a total of 2,460 grams of fentanyl.

Victim #1 Fatality

On Sept. 4, 2022, Cass County, Mo., sheriff's deputies found a juvenile, identified in court documents as "Victim #1," deceased in her bedroom. An autopsy report identified "Fentanyl Intoxication" as the cause of death. Investigators determined that Draggoo was selling fentanyl pills to the victim and had supplied her with fentanyl pills on the evening of Sept. 3, 2022.

Victim #2 Fatality

On Sept. 13, 2022, a deceased person, identified in court documents as "Victim #2," was found in the Belton residence where she lived with her mother. A blue pill was found in her bedroom, which was tested and determined to contain fentanyl. An autopsy report identified the cause of death as "Acute Fentanyl Toxicity." Investigators learned that Draggoo was selling fentanyl pills to Victim #2. Draggoo typically would drop off pills near midnight at Victim #2's bedroom window, and cell phone GPS information indicated Draggoo was in the area of Victim #2's residence at approximately 12:20 a.m on Sept. 13, 2022.

Attempted Arrest of Draggoo

On Sept. 22, 2022, law enforcement officers conducted surveillance of Draggoo's apartment and attempted to arrest him. Draggoo got into a Jeep Renegade driven by his brother, co-defendant Colt Justin Draggoo, 21, of Kansas City, Mo. Officers attempted to conduct a traffic stop of the vehicle, but the vehicle fled. Tiger and Colt Draggoo later returned to the apartment complex, but when an officer drove into the parking lot, Tiger Draggoo ran into the apartment building and was able to escape.

Colt Draggoo was arrested. Officers found a loaded Springfield Armory 9mm handgun sitting on the driver's seat of the Jeep. A laundry bag in the back seat contained two fire safes that had a total of $184,500 in cash. Colt Draggoo has pleaded guilty to his role in the drug-trafficking conspiracy.

Officers searched Tiger Draggoo's apartment and found 17 firearms, including two machine guns, ammunition of various calibers, $246,769 in cash, a ballistic vest with plates, a money counter, numerous pills that contained fentanyl, eight suspected LSD tabs, and marijuana. The 17 firearms included a Del-Ton 5.56-caliber rifle (converted into a machine gun), a Glock switch (used to convert a Glock pistol into a machine gun), three Marlin .22-caliber rifles, a Norinco 7.62-caliber rifle, a Mosin-Nagant rifle, an Anderson Manufacturing AM-15 .223-caliber rifle, a Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun, an Armscorp USA .308-caliber rifle, a Century Arms 7.62-caliber rifle, a Herbert Schmidt .22-caliber revolver, a New England Firearms .22-caliber revolver, a Kimber 9mm pistol, a Glock 9mm pistol, a Sig Sauer 9mm pistol, and a Metro Arms .45-caliber pistol.

Victim #3 Fatality

On Dec. 20, 2022, Raymore police officers were dispatched to a residence in Raymore regarding a non-breathing female, identified in court documents as Victim #3. Victim #3 was transported to a local hospital where she was pronounced deceased. A small jewelry box in Victim #3's bedroom contained three broken segments of a blue pill that were tested and determined to contain fentanyl. An autopsy report identified the cause of death as "Acute Fentanyl Toxicity." Investigators learned that Tiger Draggoo had been selling fentanyl to Victim #3 since as early as May 31, 2022. The last Facebook Messengers conversation between Tiger Draggoo and Victim #3 occurred on Dec. 7, 2022, when they agreed to meet and an amount of $50 was agreed upon.

Arrest of Draggoo

Tiger Draggoo was arrested at his residence on Jan. 20, 2023. Tiger Draggoo was in possession of almost $2,000 in cash in his billfold and pockets. Officers searched Tiger Draggoo's apartment and recovered pills from the toilet. Officers also found suspected psilocybin mushrooms, 144 grams of yellow THC wax, and more than $62,000 in additional cash. Officers searched Tiger Draggoo's Honda Accord and found three handguns, a Palmetto State Armory multi-caliber rifle, an unregistered short-barreled 12-gauge shotgun, and $1,250 in cash. Officers searched his girlfriend's Jeep Renegade, which was located at the apartment complex, and found a backpack that contained more than $82,000 in cash.

Under federal statutes, Tiger Draggoo is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brad K. Kavanaugh and Robert Smith. It was investigated by the Jackson County Drug Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Belton, Mo., Police Department, the Raymore, Mo., Police Department, the Cass County, Mo., Sheriff's Department, and the FBI.

Updated October 16, 2024