On Monday, February 5, 2024, Tyrell Gist, 27, of Atlantic City, NJ pleaded guilty before the Honorable Joseph Levin, J.S.C., to two counts of first-degree strict
liability for causing the drug induced deaths of two tourists visiting Atlantic City from the United Kingdom. Under the terms of the plea agreement, Gist is expected to be sentenced to an
aggregate term of 13 years in New Jersey State Prison subject to the No Early Release Act. He will be required to serve 85% of his sentence before becoming eligible for parole and he will be supervised for a period of five years upon his release from prison.
On March 8, 2020, Bally’s employees located two unresponsive males, Scott Jordan, 42, and Simon Gamble, 39, inside their hotel room & notified police. Both men were pronounced dead
on scene. Inside the hotel room, police located approximately 10 ripped white wax baggies and a line of a white powdery substance on a table. The New Jersey State Police lab concluded
the wax baggies contained heroin, fentanyl, & 4-ANNP. The medical examiner determined that the decedents’ deaths were caused by acute toxic effects of fentanyl and ethanol.
The investigation determined that the victims were citizens of the United Kingdom working in New York City, who spent the night in Atlantic City and planned to return to New York on
March 8, 2020. Bally’s surveillance helped police identify Gist as the individual who sold the drugs to the victims.
This case was investigated and prosecuted by the Gangs, Guns, and Narcotics Unit of the Atlantic Country Prosecutor’s Office, with assistance from the Atlantic City Police Department.
Gist also pled guilty on two unrelated indictments.
Gist pled guilty to third-degree possession with the intent to distribute cocaine resulting from an Atlantic City Police Department investigation on August 15, 2020, in which Gist was observed multiple times conducting what police recognized as hand-to-hand drug transactions on the 1700 block of Martin Luther King Boulevard. Gist was searched incident to arrest with
approximately 12 grams of cocaine on his person along with a large amount of U.S. currency. Gist is expected to be sentenced to a five-year New Jersey State prison term to run concurrent to his other matters.
Additionally, Gist pled guilty to third-degree distribution of methamphetamine and third-degree eluding resulting from a motor vehicle stop that occurred on August 2, 2020. Atlantic City
Police Department officers observed a Hyundai Tucson sport utility vehicle speeding and failing to stop at a stop sign. Officers activated the lights and sirens to initiate the stop, in which
the vehicle failed to do so, but eventually came to a stop. The driver, Gist, was subsequently arrested and found to have methamphetamine and a large amount of U.S. currency on his
person. Gist is expected to be sentenced to a five-year New Jersey State prison term to run concurrent to his other matters.
He is currently being housed at the Atlantic County Justice Facility. Sentencing is scheduled for May 3, 2024, on all three matters.
