Federal filings link products sold at an Oxford vape shop to one student while investigators continue examining two separate deaths.
OXFORD, Miss. — A father and son who worked at an Oxford vape and tobacco store face federal drug charges as authorities investigate the deaths of two University of Mississippi students and examine kratom-related compounds detected in both students’ toxicology testing.
Yahya Mohamed Mosleh, 51, and his son, Islam Yahya Mosleh, 18, have each been charged with possession with intent to distribute controlled substances. Federal authorities say the investigation grew from the Sept. 21 deaths of Aidan Hamilton, 18, and Robert Strang, 20, who were found in separate locations in Oxford. Prosecutors have not charged either Mosleh with causing a student’s death, and investigators have not announced a final cause of death for Hamilton or Strang.
A newer federal filing says toxicology testing found mitragynine, MGM-15 and MGPI in both students’ systems. Investigators said the same substances were associated with Smax Mango Breeze pills found in their rooms. The findings add a laboratory link to an investigation that initially centered on packaging and purchase records, but they do not by themselves establish what caused either student’s death.
Hamilton, a freshman from Englewood, Colorado, was found unresponsive in a University of Mississippi dorm room. Investigators found opened and unopened packages of suspected kratom derivatives nearby. About an hour later, Strang, a junior from Atlanta, was found dead at a separate off-campus location. Authorities have continued to describe the deaths as separate investigations and have not announced evidence showing that the two students obtained their products from the same retailer.
Bank records cited in federal filings show Hamilton made several purchases in September at Puffs Vape, Tobacco and Beer in Oxford. Investigators allege the store sold Hamilton pills in the days before his death. Records reviewed during the investigation indicated that Strang bought a similar product from another store outside Lafayette County, meaning the federal case against the Moslehs is tied most directly to the suspected source of products found with Hamilton.
Investigators used a confidential informant as they examined sales at Puffs. According to a federal affidavit, the informant went to the store Sept. 24 and asked Yahya Mosleh about kratom-based pills. Authorities allege he completed a sale while cautioning the buyer about the pills. The allegation is part of the government’s case and has not been proven at trial.
Police later searched the business and seized roughly 500 units of kratom and kratom-like products, along with suspected THC products. Investigators said they found Smax Mango Breeze merchandise with packaging and ingredients matching products recovered during the Hamilton investigation. Federal prosecutors have cited those similarities, along with purchase records and laboratory findings, as they seek to establish how the products moved from retail shelves to the student.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Mississippi has said certain kratom derivatives, including MGM-15 and MGPI, are Schedule I controlled substances. Natural kratom, derived from a tree native to Southeast Asia, is treated differently under federal law, while some states and communities impose additional restrictions. Oxford has its own prohibition on kratom products, and Mississippi restricts sales by age.
The Moslehs appeared before a federal magistrate judge, who found sufficient evidence for the criminal case to proceed. Attorneys representing the two men have declined to comment publicly on the allegations. As with all criminal defendants, they are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
The investigation remains active among federal, state and local agencies. Authorities have said additional charges are possible as testing, records reviews and source tracing continue. The presence of kratom-related compounds in both students’ systems is now part of the evidence under review, but officials have not publicly determined that those compounds caused either death.
Author note: Last updated October 4, 2026.