DUBLIN — A Dublin woman returned to her home one July morning to find her 18-year-old son dead on the bathroom floor from a suspected fentanyl overdose.
When police searched the teen’s phone, they discovered his suspected drug dealer was a man well-known to East Bay police. He allegedly called himself “The Abominable Dro Man” — the term “dro” being a slang word for marijuana — but his real name is Mark Overton Allen and he has long been suspected of selling drugs to teens, according to authorities and court filings.
Allen, 33, has now been charged in federal court with possession with intent to distribute cocaine, an offense that carries up to 20 years in prison. The criminal complaint alleges that he arranged to sell cocaine to an 18-year-old, but instead gave him drugs containing the fentanyl that killed him.
An online fundraiser for the 18-year-old describes him as a “bright, compassionate, and inspiring young man” who was “known for his intelligence and warmth” and “had a special gift for connecting with children.”
“Whether it was through playful conversations or thoughtful guidance, he became the ‘cool big brother’ every kid looked up to,” the fundraiser says.
For police investigators, this was far from the first time that Allen had been accused of selling drugs to kids, or that he was associated with a suspected drug overdose. In 2023, Danville police responded to a report of a 20-year-old overdosing on something after consuming Xanax and alcohol at Allen’s home at 1540 Mission Drive.
In June 2024, police allegedly caught him with two 15-year-old boys in the garage of the same residence. One of the teens had methamphetamine, Xanax and marijuana in his pocket, and later identified Allen as his drug dealer to his therapist, according to court records.
In July 2024, while investigating allegations that Allen was selling drugs to kids, police seized suspected fentanyl, cocaine, Oxycodone, LSD, ecstasy, marijuana, heroin syringes, 40 bottles of alcohol, psilocybin mushrooms, nicotine pouches, drug paraphernalia, more than $800 in cash and other evidence from his Danville home. An earlier search of his car yielded a similar trove of drugs and, again, about $800 in cash, according to court records.
Still, Allen largely avoided criminal charges for the next year, until after the 18-year-old’s overdose death. The lone exception came in June 2024, when Contra Costa prosecutors charged him with misdemeanors for allegedly having various drugs in his possession, including cocaine and fentanyl, when a San Ramon officer searched him in January 2024, court records show. He was also allegedly found with a switchblade, a pay/owe ledger and a scale, according to court records.
In that case, Allen pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor and was sentenced to 30 days in a work program, participation in drug addiction treatment, and a year of court probation, records show. The sentence was handed down in October 2024.
The Contra Costa District Attorney’s Office wasn’t presented a case to potentially file charges from the Danville investigation, prosecutors said. The Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office, which contracts police services in Danville, didn’t respond to a request for comment.
Allen is in custody in the Contra Costa jail system with a no-bail federal hold, records show. His next court date has been set for Aug. 21.
Authorities say that Allen, who has known addresses in Danville and Oakland, discussed pricing for small amounts of cocaine with the 18-year-old from Dublin, using the alias “Dro Man” on a chat app. During a subsequent search of Allen’s Oakland home, authorities say they found methamphetamine, dozens of cannabis vape pens, suspected fentanyl and peyote in powder form.
Police say that in 2024, the parents of a15-year-old boy who allegedly bought drugs from Allen confronted him about it. They later told police investigators how they say he responded.
“Kids will do drugs and it’s better they do it responsibly,” Allen allegedly told the parents.