The accused

Wealthy Democratic donor Ed Buck arrested after third man overdoses in his home

Ed Buck, Democratic donor, West Hollywood, Gemmel Moore, Timothy Dean

Wealthy, Democratic donor Ed Buck has been arrested and hit with a string of charges. It comes months after the deaths of two black men at his home in West Hollywood, California. Both died from drug overdoses: Gemmel Moore, 26, died in 2017 and Timothy Dean, 55, in January this year.

Buck, 65, was charged yesterday with a felony count each of battery causing serious injury, administering methamphetamine and maintaining a drug house. However, the charges are not related to the two men who died in his home.

Related: Wealthy gay Democratic donor Ed Buck accused of 2 new ghastly charges 

Both of those deaths have previously been ruled ‘accidental overdoses’ and the L.A. District Attorney has declined to press charges relating to them.

Yesterday’s arrest of Buck came after a third man reportedly overdosed at his house just last week. Prosecutors allege Buck supplied the methamphetamine that led to the man’s overdose.

The unnamed 37-year-old alleges the first time he visited Buck’s apartment on Sept. 4, Buck injected him with a large dose of the drug. Concerned about the amount he’d been given, the man left.

However, he says he returned again Sept. 11. Buck again administered “two dangerously large doses,” to the man, according to prosecutors, resulting in him OD’ing. He managed to escape Buck’s home, reach hospital and survived.

On searching Buck’s home, authorities say they found a large number of photographs of men in compromising positions.

Related: Mother sues Democratic donor Ed Buck for the wrongful death of her son 

Prosecutors in California are asking Buck, who they label, “a violent, dangerous sexual predator” be held on $4million bail.

They paint a picture of Buck as someone who offer drugs and money to vulnerable addicts in exchange for sexual favors. They allege he has a fetish for administering drugs to other men.

“It is only a matter of time before another one of these vulnerable young men dies of an overdose,” say prosecutors.

They continue, “From his home, in a position of power, Buck manipulates his victims into participating in his sexual fetishes,” say prosecutors. “These fetishes include supplying and personally administering dangerously large doses of narcotics to his victims…. Not deterred by the senseless deaths of Moore and Dean, the defendant nearly killed a third victim last week.”

Buck is due to be arraigned on Wednesday. If found guilty on all charges, he could face a maximum sentence of five years and eight months in state prison.

Neither Buck, nor his attorney Seymour Amster, has issued any statement yet in response to the charges. Buck has previously strenuously denied any wrongdoing in connection with the deaths of the two men in his home.

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