Gonic Woman Cops to Hiding Heroin Death of Daughter

Jazzmyn Rood, 42, of Gonic, New Hampshire, was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison and one year of supervised release after admitting she concealed the truth about a fatal heroin deal that killed her daughter, Evangelique Tarmey. Rood pleaded guilty to misprision of a felony — knowingly hiding a crime — in connection with the distribution of a controlled substance resulting in death, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Concord.

The deadly chain of events unfolded at the Riviera Motel in October 2015. On October 16, Rood’s boyfriend, Mark Ross, drove with Tarmey and another individual to Lawrence, Massachusetts, to score heroin. Ross returned with the drugs, injected Rood, then himself, before handing a portion to Tarmey. Rood admitted she knew Ross gave the drugs to her daughter. By morning, Tarmey was dead in the motel room. The New Hampshire Medical Examiner ruled the cause: acute fentanyl intoxication.

When Rochester Police arrived on October 17, 2015, Rood lied straight to investigators. She denied any drug use by herself or Ross the night before — a flat-out falsehood meant to shield Ross and obstruct justice. Her silence and deception stretched across years, but federal prosecutors didn’t let it slide. The case, built with physical evidence and witness testimony, exposed a pattern of denial in the face of a daughter’s preventable death.

U.S. Attorney Emily Gray Rice made it clear: lies have consequences. “Fighting the opioid epidemic is a multi-pronged, team effort,” Rice said. “We will continue to work with law enforcement to identify and prosecute those who distribute drugs that cause overdose deaths — and those who provide false information in those investigations.” Her message: accountability runs beyond the dealer.

DEA Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Ferguson echoed that stance. “Anytime there is a loss of life involving a drug overdose it is a tragic event; but even more so in this case given the young age of the victim,” he said. “Those responsible for distributing these lethal drugs… and those who conceal or provide false information need to be held accountable.” The DEA, he stressed, is locked in a war against poison disguised as relief.

The investigation was led by the Rochester Police Department, with critical support from the Drug Enforcement Administration. Though this prosecution began before the April 2016 launch of a joint federal-state task force targeting overdose deaths, it’s now a blueprint for future cases. Rood’s sentence sends a message: hiding death won’t keep you free.