Sean and Afrodita Foster鈥檚 living room doesn鈥檛 have a Christmas tree.
Instead, it鈥檚 lined with a growing stack of sympathy cards, framed posters and signed sports equipment.
The end of January will mark three years since their son, Cayden, didn鈥檛 wake up on a morning he should have been getting ready for school. They鈥檇 later learn he died from a fentanyl overdose while on a FaceTime call with a friend.
One of his last Google searches, Sean said, was about how to tell whether a pill is real or fake.
Ever since Cayden died, the two have worked with prosecutors and detectives, hoping for accountability. Experts warned them that cases such as their son’s are difficult, and rarely get prosecuted.
But years later, Sean, Afrodita and dozens of Cayden鈥檚 friends packed a Harrisonburg, Virginia, federal courtroom, as two people who admitted distributing the fentanyl that killed him were sentenced to over a decade behind bars.
鈥淓verybody else in the courtroom will be getting up on Thursday and celebrating Christmas with family, enjoy this time of being together,鈥� Sean said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e going to go to the cemetery. That鈥檚 where we spend holidays and Sundays. That鈥檚 the only place we get through the holidays.鈥�
The couple remained involved in the case, navigating evolving circumstances. Eventually, the Drug Enforcement Administration accepted it. Then, there was a leadership change in the U.S. Attorney鈥檚 Office for the Western District of Virginia.
Sean, an attorney, built a slideshow outlining recommendations for how to prosecute the case. They collected gigabytes of Snapchat data. They provided statements and spoke in front of the court.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not the TV drama,鈥� Sean said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not 鈥楲aw and Order,’ where in 60 minutes you鈥檙e going to go front to back and quickly closed, and everything鈥檚 tied up neatly and everybody鈥檚 done their job. It鈥檚 just been exhausting.鈥�
But last week, a federal judge sentenced 24-year-old Liam Conaway to 20 years in a federal prison. Prosecutors said he admitted obtaining the fentanyl-laced pills and selling them to Foster.
Conaway was a student at James Madison University, and prosecutors said Cayden and Conaway had consumed pills together during Conaway鈥檚 school break from JMU.
Charging documents said Cayden contacted Conaway to buy pills.
On Jan. 27, 2023, court documents said Cayden sent Conaway $105 on Venmo to pay for the drugs. Conaway bought about 10 pills from Bessy Jimenez Mejia, his supplier, in Harrisonburg.
The pills, documents said, were designed to look like 30 mg Percocet pills but were counterfeit and contained fentanyl.
Then, one of Cayden鈥檚 friends delivered three pills to him in Northern Virginia.
Jimenez Mejia was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think there will ever be closure,鈥� Afrodita said. 鈥淏ut we just have to live with what happened.鈥�
In the years since Cayden鈥檚 death, the couple has worked with Virginia state lawmakers and spoken to Northern Virginia students about the dangers of fentanyl. They鈥檙e planning to continue that work.
鈥淚t was a distraction for us,鈥� Afrodita said. 鈥淲e still, when we think about it, are shocked by our son鈥檚 death. The advocacy was important to us, because from the beginning, we said we don鈥檛 want this to happen to another child.鈥�
Many of Cayden鈥檚 friends, now in college, have remained in contact with his parents, offering support and companionship.
Afrodita still won鈥檛 enter Cayden鈥檚 room, and his seat at the table just off the kitchen is marked with a plush pillow.
But with a yearslong investigation and court proceedings behind them, they鈥檙e planning to prioritize their grief. Part of that is getting Cayden鈥檚 gravestone marker done.
鈥淲e were just emotionally not ready for that,鈥� Afrodita said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 one more final thing to do, and we just haven鈥檛 been able to do that.鈥�
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