Alexander County Man Charged With Murder After Overdose Death

33-year-old Mathew Douglas Roop of Rink Dam Road in Taylorsville was arrested today by authorities in Catawba County. According to the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office, Roop was indicted by a Catawba County Grand Jury for second-degree murder, death by distribution, and sale and delivery of schedule II controlled substance.

In October of 2023 Deputies with the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of a suspected overdose at a residence on Old Shelby Road. When deputies arrived they found 35-year-old Brian Paul Topping deceased inside the home.

An autopsy revealed the cause of Topping’s death was toxicity stemming from ingestion of a mixture of narcotics. Investigators gathered evidence that resulted in the identification of Mathew Douglas Roop as the person suspected of supplying the narcotics that caused Topping’s death.

Roop was placed in the Catawba County Detention Facility under no bond. An appearance in Catawba County Superior Court was scheduled for Wednesday.

Story: Rob Eastwood-WHKY