An inquest into the death of Brendan Vermette has revealed his cause of death was due to fentanyl overdose. (submitted photo)

By Susan McNeil

Inquest

Sask. Pen prisoner died of fentanyl overdose, inquest hears

Mar 18, 2025 | 4:37 PM

A 31-year-old man who died in the Saskatchewan Penitentiary in Prince Albert three years ago did so due to a lethal amount of fentanyl.

The inquest into the death of Brendan Vermette began on March 18 with testimony from the RCMP officer who first responded, the guard who noticed him unresponsive and from Dr. Derek Musgrove, a forensic pathologist who works for the Government of Saskatchewan.

Vermette’s blood had four nanograms/mg of fentanyl and several derivatives in his blood. Three ng/mg are fatal according to Musgrove.

Vermette’s coronary artery was 99 per cent blocked but some people can live with that level of blockage so his death was ruled due to the level of drugs in his blood.

Other drugs, such as cocaine and THC were found in his urine but those only indicate recent use in the days or weeks prior, not intoxication when he died.

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The Corrections Officer who was one of several staff doing the cell checks the night of March 9, 2022, said when he checked Vermette’s cell during the 1a.m. round, he noticed a covering over the window, a common tactic for prisoners to do.

As is policy, he looked inside the food tray slot to check to make sure the prisoner showed signs of life and saw Vermette sitting with his back to the door and his head slumped down.

He did not respond to questions, so the officer got help and went into the cell to check him. CPR, an AED and Naloxone were all used but proved ineffective.

Vermette’s brother Brady was in the cell across the hall and allegedly told the staff that Brendan’s death was an accident and due to something he had taken. He will testify in the upcoming days of the inquest.

The officer was asked how drugs get into the institution and said that usually they are flown in by drones, an issue that has been increasing as time goes on. At times, guards will find crashed drones in the yards.

RCMP Inspector Ashley St. Germaine along with a fellow officer were called by prison staff to investigate after Vermette was found.

When she arrived at the jail around 2 am on March 9, 2022, she noted that Vermette’s body had been taken out of his cell, something she said was likely due to the lack of space inside the cell. A cell phone, which prisoners are not allowed to have inside jails, was on his bed as was some vomit.

After noticing an institutional screwdriver on the shelf by the bed, she noticed a loose screw in the duct system and opened it up to check inside.

Inside, there was a Nintendo gaming cartridge that had another cell phone and a charging cord and a SIM tray inside of it.

There was also a sock with three more cell phones inside of it. Two were flip phones. There was a scale and some ear buds along with multiple screwdrivers that had been sharpened into points, or ‘stabbing weapons’. She said there was also a knife.

Officers did not find any illicit drugs inside the cell or the vent.

Video surveillance of the common areas show the two Vermette brothers talking to each other and with what looked like a possible shove, but Brendan then went into his cell and Brady stayed in his as it was 10 o’clock and the evening lockdown had begun.

Vermette was incarcerated for a conviction of possession for the purpose of trafficking and had been convicted of a similar offence before that, starting in 2020.

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susanmcneil@pattisonmedia.com

On BlueSky: @susanmcneil.bsky.social