The scene after Myles Sanderson's arrest. He died in police custody shortly after. (Canadian Press)

By Susan McNeil

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The coroner who examined the body of Myles Sanderson said he died of acute cocaine overdose, with levels of the drug in very high amounts.

The inquest, held before a jury, is a fact-finding exercise to determine cause of death and the actions leading up to it. The jury is then permitted to issue findings and recommendations to prevent other deaths in similar circumstances.

Pathologist Shaun Ladham spoke about the autopsy and analysis of Sanderson’s body on the second day of testimony at the inquest.

He described the cocaine levels in Sanderson as “very significant” but said one of Sanderson’s major arteries was 90 per cent blocked which may have contributed to his death.

“The cocaine was six times what we see with the benzos, so it was huge,” Ladham said.

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Blood taken from Sanderson’s heart and femoral artery had levels of cocaine that measured 6.5 mg/litre of blood.

By comparison, a study of seven cocaine overdoses among young people had .1 to .9 mg of cocaine per litre of blood.

The three major findings in Ladham’s report were the cocaine use, Sanderson’s previous history of illegal drug use and the constriction in his artery.

That constriction alone could have caused a myocardial infarction at any time, despite Sanderson’s age of 31.

Ladham’s testimony was followed by Dr. Jennifer Billinsky, who works in the Roy Romanow Laboratory and conducted some of the tests on the Sanderson’s bodily fluids.

There was no evidence of alcohol, fentanyl or meth use in his system, but she confirmed the very high cocaine levels.

“It’s one of the highest readings I’ve ever seen,” she said.

Billinsky said that since 2017 when she began issuing reports, she has seen a rise in overdose deaths in Saskatchewan.

In 2022, of 1,096 cases she tested herself, 446 had some element of overdose or illegal drug use. About 50 per cent were connected to fentanyl, 56 had some cocaine and 22 were due exclusively to cocaine.

There is no antidote to cocaine overdose, she said,and treatment is limited to dealing with the symptoms.

The powder and a rolled up $20 bill police recovered from the stolen truck Sanderson was driving before his arrest both tested positive for cocaine.

At the same time as Billinsky was testing the fluids and the bill, a sample of the powder was sent to the federal lab, coming back as 90 per cent pure cocaine.

Cocaine consumption can lead to impulsive behaviours and increased self-confidence and overdose can happen more slowly or in a matter of minutes, the jury heard.

By comparison, fentanyl use has the opposite effect and is a depressant. Users become more relaxed and less excitable.

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susan.mcneil@pattisonmedia.com