Staff Report

Shawn David Hovenden

WARSAW — A Claypool man was recently arrested for allegedly dealing drugs to a Warsaw man who overdosed and passed away.

Shawn David Hovenden, 26, 3350 E. 700S, Claypool, is charged with dealing a controlled substance resulting in death, a level 1 felony.

On Oct. 27, 2023, EMS personnel responded to a Warsaw residence regarding an unresponsive man. Law enforcement went to the scene and discovered the man, later identified as Ryan Kiesow, 23, Warsaw, was dead. Emergency personnel at the scene said they believed Kiesow’s cause of death was possibly a drug overdose.

According to court documents, upon searching the residence, officers found drug paraphernalia and a pill associated with containing fentanyl. A relative of Kiesow’s provided law enforcement with Kiesow’s cellphone. The relative said Kiesow had overdosed one to two months prior on fentanyl and was taken to a local hospital.

Upon searching the phone, officers found a conversation from Oct. 26, 2023, between Kiesow and Hovenden. In the messages, Hovenden agreed to sell Kiesow four counterfeit fentanyl pills in exchange for money. That same day, Hovenden left Kiesow an audio message asking if Kiesow was okay and also told Kiesow to let him know if he needed some more.

An autopsy report showed Kiesow’s manner of death was ruled accidental, with the cause being fentanyl and methamphetamine toxicity.

Hovenden was booked in the Kosciusko County Jail on Jan. 28, 2024, with a $101,000 surety and cash bond.