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Concord Police Investigate Death of Teen in Possible Accidental Overdose

CONCORD (CBS SF) -- Police in Concord on Monday confirmed that the department is investigating the death of a 14-year-old child at their home after the ingestion of a pill over the weekend.

Police posted information about the investigation on the department's Twitter account Monday afternoon. The death happened at the child's Concord residence on Saturday after a pill was ingested. Police said the child was a student at Concord High School.

While police are still in the preliminary stages of their investigation and authorities have yet to confirm the cause of death, they said there are "indications that the death may have been an accidental overdose after the ingestion of a pill."

Police said they want the community to respect the privacy of the family during this difficult time, but also want to make the public aware of the incident.

"We do not know if there are other pills circulating in the school or community, but want parents and students to be cautious," the police press release said. "Everyone in the community is to be reminded that they should only ingest pills or medications prescribed by their doctor."

Police included a photo of a pill that may be similar to the one in the investigation with the press release and noted that similar incidents were happening in many communities where counterfeited pills are laced with other toxic substances including fentanyl, which can be deadly even in extremely small doses.

Students on the Concord High campus were shocked to hear about the loss of a fellow student. Most found out about it during Monday morning announcements.

"It was at the beginning of class. We had a moment of silence in her honor," said student Kathryn Sotirova.

Classmate Grace Geisler added, "They said they didn't want to release any details that they wanted to be respectful to the family."

The Mt. Diablo Unified School District issued a statement from Superintendent Dr. Adam Clark saying the district's "employees and stakeholders mourn this tragic loss. We send our heartfelt condolences to the family and all those who knew the student."

The district added there are counselors on campus to help faculty, families and students through this difficult time.

"It's terrible. It's terrible that happened to her," said Grace Geisler. "Like as Kathryn said it doesn't happen everyday. Drugs are everywhere, we try to avoid them most of the time but it's harder for some people."

Police said they were not releasing any additional information or making any further statements at this time due to the early stage of the investigation. Anyone with information related to the case is encouraged to call Detective Cartwright at (925) 603-5829 or our anonymous tip-line at (925) 603-5836, referencing case #21-8159.

Andrea Nakano contributed to this report.

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