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Ole Miss students' toxicology reports completed, official says

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Sabes, A. (2026, September 30). Ole Miss students' toxicology reports completed, official says. Fox News. https://www.foxnews.com/us/ole-miss-students-toxicology-reports-completed-official-says

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Fox News · collected 2026-09-30 · by Adam Sabes
Content note This article describes suicide or self-harm.

Quick Summary

An official from the Mississippi Department of Public Safety told Fox News Digital that toxicology reports for Aidan Hamilton, 18, and Robert Strang, 20, who died on September 21 after consuming synthetic kratom products, have been completed. The report indicates that both students had packages labeled "Smax, Pseudo-DHM" tablets near them upon death. Officials suggest that the deaths could be related to drug overdose given Hamilton's condition of Pulmonary Edema and Strang's cold body temperature at discovery.
Written by AI on 2026-09-30, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Two University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) students were found dead on separate occasions, with packaged kratom recovered at both scenes. Officials from the Lafayette County Metro Narcotics Unit are investigating but have not confirmed that the deaths are linked or that kratom was a contributing factor in either case. The university expressed its condolences and stated it is heartbroken by the loss of these students. Chancellor Dr. Shawnboda Mead urged against speculating about the circumstances online, warning of misinformation spreading on social media. Authorities advise avoiding kratom and other substances not prescribed by medical professionals due to potential risks.

Written for “Ole Miss Student Deaths Kratom Concerns” on 2026-11-02, grounded in this article and the 17 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Ole Miss Student Deaths Kratom Concerns
Health · 18 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 19% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Fox News
Hedges 0 of 9 claims Outlet record 69/100
“The articles describe two different incidents: one about toxicology reports for student deaths and another about a non-student-related suspected overdose involving synthetic kratom.”
Daily Mail
Hedges 5 of 28 claims Outlet record 68/100
“While both articles discuss the deaths of two Ole Miss students related to kratom or synthetic kratom use, Article B covers a subsequent arrest and seizure of drugs from smoke shop employees, which is a different specific event.”
Fox News
Hedges 6 of 15 claims Outlet record 69/100
“While both articles discuss the deaths of two Ole Miss students related to kratom use on the same date, Article A focuses on a warning given by a vape store clerk about the dangers of kratom, while Article B discusses the completion and details of toxicology reports for the deceased students.”
The Guardian
Hedges 3 of 23 claims Outlet record 66/100
“Article A discusses the completion of toxicology reports for two deceased students, while Article B reports on charges filed against a shop clerk and his son for selling illegal kratom products related to the same incident but describes a different specific event.”
Daily Mail
Hedges 0 of 41 claims Outlet record 68/100
“Article A reports on the mayor's warning about kratom after two student deaths, while Article B discusses completed toxicology reports related to those deaths.”
Fox News
Hedges 5 of 36 claims Outlet record 69/100
“Article A describes the completion of toxicology reports for two deceased Ole Miss students, while Article B discusses the kratom industry's response to how the product may have been mischaracterized in relation to these deaths. Although related, they describe different aspects and occurrences.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
16
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
19%
3 of 16 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
69/100
Fox News's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
18
Health
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-30 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Fox News · 6241 article(s) · 11 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 11 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Adam Sabes
30 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 Last Halloween, an estimated 500 teens swarmed downtown Oak Park, where fights and gunshots erupted and police called in help from six neighboring agencies, according to a department memo. Oak Park Chief of Police Shatonya Johnson said the agency will be increasing the amount of officers on shift during Halloween, as well as several more measures aimed at preventing another teen takeover. Adults in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago are taking matters into their own hands and plan to show out en masse on the streets to prevent large gatherings by teenagers.
🔮 Lindsay Clancy's lawyer disputed claims from Patrick Clancy's counsel that she would testify in a civil case against her healthcare providers, calling them false.
🔮 "That community should put out an emergency text to everyone to make sure none of their family members are missing as he could have killed or kidnapped someone after ditching the truck," Gilliam said.
🔮 Police took the following students into custody: William Oldner, 19, Noah Lara, 20, Tyler Fogg, 18, and Wyatt Carr, 18.
🔮 During the meeting, Mayor Craig Timmons acknowledged the concerns and said he hopes the situation can be resolved.
🔮 Judge Gail Horne Ray had ruled in August that Brooks' supporters could wear pink in the courtroom, but on Monday she found Fowlkes in contempt for failing to redact Brooks' full name from the filing.
🔮 "It looks like to us that what we're piecing together, is that that he may have tried to get that pistol and the individual was fighting him and they had a fight and the guy got the pistol and shot Mr. Bobby multiple times.
🔮 Judge Debra McCaslin sided with the defense over prosecutors’ objections Friday, allowing new testing on swabs from Maggie Murdaugh’s cellphone and clippings from under her fingernails, even though the process will likely use up the last of the testable samples.
🔮 Deller testified that she didn't initially call 911 after shooting Deller because she thought police wouldn't believe her self-defense claim.
🔮 He told The Associated Press, "It’s been disheartening, to say the least, to see that one of your student’s life is in jeopardy and another student may be responsible for that." "That was one of the worst shocks in my professional career," Gomelsky said.
Also by Adam Sabes
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 30 articles by Adam Sabes →

Topics

Fox News Digital Lafayette County Ole Miss Oxford the Mississippi Department of Public Safety

Subjects

Strang PERSON · 7× Hamilton PERSON · 6× Ole Miss GPE · 3× Fox News Digital ORG · 2× Oxford GPE · 2× Aidan Hamilton PERSON · 1× Alex Gibert PERSON · 1× Lafayette County GPE · 1× Robert Strang PERSON · 1× the Mississippi Department of Public Safety ORG · 1×

Narrative

The news comes as the American Kratom Association is set to host a news conference on Wednesday, criticizing the "delay in publicly identifying the specific products purchased by two Ole Miss students before their deaths." The group says these tablets "are not natural kratom leaf and that students should have been specifically warned about these products under investigation."
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-30
🔮 Officials detailed that Hamilton "could have died due to a Pulmonary Edema," which would be consistent with a drug overdose.
2026-09-30 · Fox News
Ole Miss students' toxicology reports completed, official says · assertive framing

Claims (16 extracted, 3 hedged)

The toxicology reports for two Ole Miss students who died on Sept. 21 has been completed, an official tells Fox News Digital. asserted
official → die → Digital
Ole Miss students Aidan Hamilton, 18, and Robert Strang, 20, were found dead on Sept. 21, both with similar packages of kratom or synthetic kratom found to be in their possession, according to the court documents. uncertain
both → find → documents
Officials detailed that Hamilton "could have died due to a Pulmonary Edema," which would be consistent with a drug overdose. uncertain
which → detail → overdose
Strang was found "cold to the touch" when first responders arrived at his house near campus. asserted
responders → find → campus
Alex Gibert, press secretary for the Mississippi Department of Public Safety, told Fox News Digital that the toxicology report for Strang and Hamilton has been completed. asserted
report → tell → Strang
The findings will be handed over to the Lafayette County coroner and shared with the families. asserted
findings → hand → families
The news comes as the American Kratom Association is set to host a news conference on Wednesday, criticizing the "delay in publicly identifying the specific products purchased by two Ole Miss students before their deaths." The group says these tablets "are not natural kratom leaf and that students should have been specifically warned about these products under investigation." asserted
students → come → investigation
Packaging on the kratom items found near both men were labeled "Smax, Pseudo-DHM" tablets, which is a "Kratom like substance at gas stations or tobacco shops" that people buy for the "narcotic like effect," according to the court documents. uncertain
people → find → documents
Hamilton made several purchases in September at Puffs Vape, Tobacco and Beer Store in Oxford, where workers Yahya Mohamed Mosleh, 51, and Islam Mohamed, 18, were arrested and face a charge of possession of a controlled substances with intent to distribute. asserted
Mosleh → make → intent
Officials did not say in the court documents that the kratom found near him when he died came from that store. asserted
he → say → store
One of the purchases was made one day before Hamilton was found dead. asserted
Hamilton → make → purchases
One hour after finding Hamilton dead, police were dispatched to a house near campus and found Strang dead. asserted
Strang → find → campus
A package of the "Smax, Pseudo-DHM" tablets were found on his nightstand, along with 20 to 30 nitrous oxide cans, known as "whippets," which Strang's roommates said he used daily. asserted
he → find → which
Strang's roommates told officers that he was watching football and took a Xanax bar the day before being found dead. asserted
he → tell → bar
Officials said the synthetic kratom-derived product Strang had bought was purchased at a gas station about 30 minutes away from Oxford. asserted
Strang → say → Oxford
The precise role kratom played in the deaths of Hamilton and Strang has not yet been determined. asserted
kratom → play → Hamilton
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