On Friday, 27 year old Tyrell Gist of Atlantic City was
sentenced on two charges of first-degree strict liability drug induced death of two tourists
visiting Atlantic City from the United Kingdom. In accordance with his plea agreement, Gist
was sentenced to an aggregate term of 13 years in New Jersey State Prison, subject to the No
Early Release Act. He will be required to serve 85% of his sentence before being eligible for
parole and he will be supervised for a period of five years upon his release from prison.
On March 8, 2020, Bally’s employees located two unresponsive males, Scott Jordan, 42, and
Simon Gamble, 39, inside their hotel room & notified police. Both men were pronounced dead
on scene. Inside the hotel room, police located approximately 10 ripped white wax baggies
and a line of a white powdery substance on a table. The New Jersey State Police lab
concluded the wax baggies contained heroin, fentanyl, & 4-ANNP. The medical examiner
determined that the decedents’ deaths were caused by acute toxic effects of fentanyl and
ethanol.
The investigation determined that the victims were citizens of the United Kingdom working in
New York City, who spent the night in Atlantic City and planned to return to New York on
March 8, 2020. Bally’s surveillance helped police identify Gist as the individual who sold the
drugs to the victims.