Tehama County Sheriff’s Detectives believe they’ve solved the mystery of a Dairyville man who suspected he had been drugged and later died. 41-year-old Harry Velez called 9-1-1 on the night of September 21st and reported that he was experiencing symptoms that made him believe he had been drugged without his knowledge. Deputies were dispatched and they reported that he did, in fact, seem to be on drugs and his behavior was becoming increasingly erratic. The deputies tried to detain him but he resisted and they used a Taser on him and handcuffed him. Velez continued to struggle and thrash around and his breathing became labored. At one point he seemed to stop breathing and deputies started CPR until medical personnel arrived and took over. Velez was hospitalized and 5 days later, on September 26th, he died in the hospital. An autopsy was inconclusive but toxicology results show that Velez had a toxic level of Methamphetamine in his blood. No other drugs were detected. Detectives are skeptical about the claims that Velez was drugged without his knowledge because he has a long history of drug related arrests in multiple states. A witness said he had spent some time in the bathroom just before his symptoms started. Velez was awaiting court action from an arrest in May for sexual solicitation of a minor. It’s not been determined if the deputies’ handling of Velez or the delayed medical attention were factors that contributed to his death.
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