A North Dakota college student whose body was found last year in the Red River had worked as an informant for a drug task force until shortly before he died, according to a report by the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI).
North Dakota student found dead last year had worked as police drug informant
The body of Andrew Sadek was recovered from the Red River last year.
By Anne Millerbernd, Star Tribune
January 31, 2015 at 3:32AM
Andrew Sadek, who died of a gunshot to the head, was recruited as an informant after he allegedly sold less than an ounce of marijuana to a police operative twice on the North Dakota State College of Science campus in April 2013. After authorities allegedly found a marijuana grinder in his dorm room in November 2013, they interviewed Sadek and told him about the charges he could face.
The 20-year-old Sadek then agreed to work as an informant for the Southeast Multi-County Agency Drug Task Force to avoid the charges. The task force works in three North Dakota counties and Wilkin County in Minnesota, according to the report.
Sadek worked for three months as an informant, making three ⅛-ounce purchases of marijuana on the college campus from two different dealers. The last purchase was in January 2014, according to the BCI report.
He was supposed to make two additional purchases to resolve the charges against him, but he stopped contacting police.
Sadek, who was from Rogers, Minn., went missing in May and his body was recovered from the Red River near Breckenridge, Minn., in late June. An autopsy report found that Sadek died from a gunshot wound to the head. KFGO (790 AM) in Fargo reported in October that the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension ruled his death a suicide.
The BCI review board that looked into Sadek's dealings with the task force "did not have any concerns with the case files" about Sadek's time as an informant, the report said. But the board did make four recommendations, including assigning a task force supervisor and making a briefing sheet before its operations.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Anne Millerbernd is a University of Minnesota student on assignment for the Star Tribune.
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Anne Millerbernd, Star Tribune
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