Shop owner who was found dead had K2, painkillers in system

By JOSEPH BUSTOS - jbustos@nwherald.com

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McHENRY – The owner of House of Glass, who was found unconscious and later died in November, had K2 along with painkillers in his system.

The McHenry County Coroner's Office, which completed its investigation this week, said there was K2, and the Painkillers: Methadone, Morphine and Lyrica in Fred Evans' system when he died.



Evans also had Clonazepam and Topiramate, both of which are used to control seizures, in his system.

However, the coroner's office could not determine what caused Evans' death. Evans also had an enlarged heart and that could have played a role, said Robert Locke, the deputy coroner.

Evans had a chronic pain condition called Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy Syndrome, Locke said, and had prescriptions for all of the drugs. 



Evans also wasn't healthy. He weighed 325 pounds and was 6-foot-2. He had trouble walking and used a wheelchair, McHenry Police Detective Sgt. John Birk said.

Locke said this case was the first confirmed McHenry County case of someone who has died while having K2 in his system.

"Hopefully it's the last," Locke said.

Evans, a Holiday Hills resident and owner of the House of Glass in McHenry, died Nov. 30 after he was found unconscious at the store with another man. Evans was 57.

Carbon monoxide poisoning was ruled out as a cause of death, and there were no odors or visible smoke when emergency crews arrived.

Birk said the other man, a McHenry resident whose name is being withheld by police, confirmed that he and Evans had used K2 earlier in the day. Video surveillance also showed that Evans did smoke something within an hour of becoming unconscious.

The 38-year-old McHenry man was found unconscious, but breathing, on the ground. Evans was found slumped over in a wheelchair. He was not breathing, officials said. Evans was pronounced dead at Centegra Hospital - McHenry.

K2 is Synthetic Marijuana. It has been marketed as incense for aromatherapy. People smoke the product, and it mimics the effects of THC, the active ingredient in marijuana.

K2 became illegal in the state on Jan. 1.

No criminal charges will be filed as part of the case, Birk said.

The coroner's office completed its investigation on Tuesday.