For some families during the holidays there is an empty seat at the table — a hole that can never be filled because of addiction.
In Carteret County, two mothers are living with that loss every day after losing their sons to fentanyl overdoses.
Chandler Stewart struggled with substance use since the end of high school, in and out of rehab as he tried to recover. But one relapse changed everything.
“He had not passed away at that point he was in the hospital and we were just praying that we didn’t have to make the decision to take him off of life support so he did go on his own several hours later and I knew it had to be fentanyl.” his mother Lynn Stewart says.
Chandler died on January 1, 2022. Nearly four years later, his mother still holds tightly to his memory — and encourages other families grieving similar losses to do the same.
“We need to love our children who have past by talking about them don’t isolate yourself don’t go in a room remember all the good times they had with their loved ones.”
Christmas was Chandler’s favorite holiday. A family photo taken that day became their last picture together. Now, each family member keeps that moment close, turning the image into ornaments that hang on the tree each year.
“When I look at the picture I just see everyone arguing and everything but that was the last picture that we have of chandler with the group,” says Stewart.
Just months later, another Carteret County family faced the same devastating reality.
On November 5, 2022, Tyler Dees lost his life to fentanyl after struggling with addiction for six years.
Annie Brown the mother of Tyler says, “It’s not just an empty chair at the table for Thanksgiving or Christmas. It’s every holiday, every birthday. It’s an empty space that will never be filled again.”
Tyler had just turned 26. While many families celebrate milestones and memories, his mother says grief follows her into every moment of life.
“I feel guilty sometimes for doing things because he’s not here to do them with me. I feel like I’m not supposed to smile or laugh or have fun during certain events because he’s not here anymore. It just hits me that we have to go the rest of our lives without him.”
But Tyler loved fishing — and his mother found a way to turn that passion into purpose. She created an annual event called Fishing With Addiction, raising more than $51,000 in his memory. The funds were donated to two local recovery homes, helping others on their journey toward healing.
This is a major moment in the fight against counterfeit pills. “Sophie” Xaiofei Chen has been sentenced to 4 years and 4 months for trafficking pill-making equipment into the U.S., one of the few times a supplier with no direct drug trafficking charges has faced serious consequences.
Learn how this case signals a broader federal crackdown on companies supplying the tools used to manufacture deadly fake pills, why this matters, what’s next in 2026, and how this prosecution fits into America’s struggle with fentanyl-laced counterfeit medications.
DURHAM, N.C. (WNCN) — A man has been arrested, and a kilo of the highly potent, synthetic opioid fentanyl has been seized by the Durham County Sheriff’s Office.
On Thursday, Jerrad Alexander McPherson, 28, was seen acting suspiciously in what appeared to be the sale and distribution of drugs, according to investigators with the sheriff’s narcotics unit.
Detective S. Dixon attempted a traffic stop of the maroon Buick Encore McPherson was driving, at which time warrants state McPherson drove recklessly and more than 15 mph over the posted limit in the area of Hillsborough and Colemill roads in northwest Durham.
During a short pursuit, the sheriff’s office said McPherson threw items out of the car before coming to a stop. The items thrown from the car were found to be a stolen 9mm semiautomatic pistol and a “small amount of narcotics,” according to the sheriff’s office.
After the traffic stop, a warrant was granted to search McPherson’s home, where a kilo of fentanyl was found and seized.
At the time of his arrest, McPherson was on federal probation and had been previously convicted on drug possession charges, according to his warrant.
Following his Thursday arrest, he was taken to the Durham County jail and given a $2.5 million bond. His charges include:
Trafficking opium or fentanyl
Possession with intent to manufacture, sell or deliver fentanyl
Possession with intent to manufacture, sell or deliver methamphetamine
Felony possession of cocaine
Felony flee/elude arrest with a motor vehicle
2 counts of maintaining a vehicle/dwelling with controlled substances
Possession of a stolen firearm
Possess firearm by felon
Possession of drug paraphernalia
The sheriff’s office said one kilo is enough to kill about 500,000 people, which is more than the population of the entire City of Durham.
“To remove a kilo of fentanyl off our streets potentially saves 500,000 lives because fentanyl is so potent,” Durham County Sheriff Clarence Birkhead told CBS 17. “An amount that’s the size of a pinhead could kill an individual.”
From January to August 2025, the state reported 44 fentanyl-positive deaths in Durham County. Though progress is being made, the county has lost more than 500 people due to opioids since 2013.
“Hopefully now, we’ll put together a good case and present it to the district attorney or to the U.S. attorney’s office because this is trafficking,” Birkhead said. “We’ll try to prosecute this individual to the fullest extent of the law.”
That’s a welcomed goal for family members of local victims.
