A 1-year-old boy is dead and three other children hospitalized after alleged fentanyl exposure at an NYC daycare. The daycare owner and another individual were arrested and charged with manslaughter, assault, and murder — among other charges.
On Friday, emergency responders were called to a daycare in the Bronx. Divino Nino Daycare had a child in cardiac arrest. That child was later found to have been exposed to fentanyl.
Police investigated the building and found drug production equipment inside of the daycare. The main piece of equipment was a kilo press which the NYPD stated is used by drug dealers who “package a large quantity of drugs.”
Carlisto Acevedo Brito and Grei Mendez were arrested and charged with 11 charges that included murder, manslaughter, and assault. Mendez is the owner of the daycare and Brito is a tenant in the building where the daycare is housed.
The NYPD stated they were not sure exactly what happened to the 1-year-old and the other children that were exposed to the drugs within the daycare. They also were not sure how they were exposed to the possible fentanyl and other possible drugs.
The concern for many people is how drug equipment and drugs themselves not only made it into the building but were also easily accessible for a 1-year-old and three other children to access them. Especially when an emergency inspection had shown know sign of the equipment or drugs on the site.
Parents are now concerned for their children’s safety in childcare centers where children should be safe.
This horrific and tragic incident has shined a light back on the true issue. The rising fentanyl and drug problem throughout the country.
Mayor Adams stated, “This crisis is real and it is a real wake-up call for individuals who have opioids or fentanyl in their homes.”
The health department stated that drugs were likely inhaled by the children. The amount that was inhaled though was heavy considering Narcan did not work on the 1-year-old child. As Adams stated, for individuals with these drugs in their home, the ease a child could die from exposure is staggering.
