Pot cookie blamed in falling death of Colorado student

Pot cookie: An autopsy report lists marijuana intoxication as a 'significant contributing factor' in the death of 19-year-old Levy Thamba Pongi, a native of the Republic of Congo who fell from a motel balcony on March 11.

A Congolese exchange student jumped to his death after eating a marijuana cookie that his friend legally purchased in one of Colorado's recreational pot shops, authorities said Wednesday.

An autopsy report lists marijuana intoxication as a "significant contributing factor" in the death of 19-year-old Levy Thamba Pongi, a native of the Republic of Congo who fell from a motel balcony on March 11.

Levy was a Wyoming college student who was visiting Denver on spring break. Investigators believe Pongi and his friends came to Colorado to try marijuana, Weiss-Samaras said.

Colorado legalized recreational sales of the drug in January. Colorado law bans the sale of recreational marijuana products to people under 21. It is also illegal for those under 21 to possess marijuana, and adults can be charged with a felony for giving it to someone under the legal age.

Authorities said one of Pongi's friends was old enough to buy the cookie from a pot shop. It was unclear whether the friend might face charges.

It marked the first time the Denver medical examiner's office has listed a marijuana edible as a contributor to a death, said Michelle Weiss-Samaras, a spokeswoman for the office.

"We have not had that," she said.

The friends told investigators that Pongi ate the cookie and "exhibited hostile behavior" that included pulling things off walls and speaking erratically, the autopsy report said.

Attempts by the three friends to calm Pongi seemed to work until he went outside and jumped over the balcony railing, according to the report.

Denver police ruled the death an accident but said their investigation remains open.

The medical examiner's office had Pongi's body tested for at least 250 different substances, including bath salts and synthetic marijuana, which are known to cause strange behavior. His blood tested positive only for THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, according to the report.

One of Pongi's friends also tried the cookie but stopped after feeling sick, Weiss-Samaras said.

The marijuana concentration in Pongi's blood was 7.2 nanograms of active THC per milliliter of blood. Colorado law says juries can assume someone is driving while impaired by marijuana if their blood contains more than 5 nanograms per milliliter of the chemical.

Officials at Northwest College in Powell, Wyoming, say Pongi started taking classes as an exchange student in January. He was studying engineering.

"The Northwest College campus community continues to grieve after Levy's death," the college said in a statement. "All of us were deeply saddened by this tragic incident and feel for his family."