The man accused of selling the drugs that allegedly killed the Indian travel influencer and Dubai resident Anunay Sood while he was staying in Las Vegas is expected to appear in court on Thursday.
Weeks ago, 49-year-old Thamrong Hill was indicted on charges of second-degree murder and selling and transporting a controlled substance, resulting in Mr Sood's death last November.
Mr Hill's forthcoming appearance in Nevada's Clark County District Court is classified as a confirmation-of-counsel status check, meaning a judge will make sure he has proper legal representation before moving forward with the case. If he is not able to obtain his own lawyer, he will probably be given a public defender.
According to Las Vegas CBS affiliate KLAS-TV, Mr Hill said during his initial court appearance in June that he could not afford legal representation.
KLAS-TV, which obtained grand jury transcripts from Mr Sood's fiancee, Shivani Parihar — who was with him in Las Vegas at the time of his death — reported that Parihar testified against Mr Hill and shed more light on what happened in the hours leading up to the incident.
In December, the coroner's office in Clark County, Nevada, told The National that tests had confirmed that Mr Sood had died of combined fentanyl and ethanol toxicity.
Mr Sood, 32, was staying at the Wynn Las Vegas luxury hotel on November 4 when those with him found him unresponsive.
“They thought he was in a deep sleep,” the police report said. When they could not wake him, they called first responders. The report said that after an ambulance arrived, medical personnel “began life-saving care” with CPR and Narcan packets — used to reverse or reduce the effects of opioids — but could not revive him.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department report said witnesses suggested his death “could be from a possible overdose”.
The report also mentions that the group with whom Mr Sood was staying in Las Vegas sought to “obtain some narcotics” and later met with a man who sold the group what were suspected to be drugs.
KLAS-TV reported that transcripts indicated that Mr Sood's fiancee said they thought at the time that they had purchased cocaine from Mr Hill. Investigators say they were actually sold fentanyl, which is significantly more deadly than cocaine.
Mr Sood, whose Instagram account has 1.4 million followers, was known for his luxurious lifestyle and travel storytelling.
His family confirmed the news of his death on his official account, leading to messages of condolence from Dubai, where he had made his home, and from India.
Ms Parihar posted a tribute soon thereafter, reading: “My heart feels heavy and everything around me feels empty. You were my person, my safe place, my life, my everything.” He is survived by his two sisters.
