SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — A 19-year-old man has pleaded guilty in connection with the fentanyl-related death of 15-year-old Kelcy Orr of Vermillion, South Dakota. Udda Kobaba is scheduled to be sentenced on June 9 in federal court in Sioux Falls.
Kelcy Orr died on December 23, 2023, after taking a counterfeit pill containing fentanyl. Investigators determined that the pills were part of an illicit drug supply circulating in the region. A small baggie containing additional pills was found near her at the time of her death.
Kobaba was charged with distributing a controlled substance, resulting in death. Kobaba admitted that he sold several pills to Evan Nelson between December 20 and 23, 2023, that he knew contained fentanyl, and that Nelson resold some of the pills to Kelcy, who died from fentanyl poisoning.
Kobaba faces a minimum of 20 years and up to life in prison for the crime. Fentanyl-related deaths remain a national crisis, with an average of 22 teenagers ages 14 to 18 dying from drug overdoses each week, according to federal data.
