New York police found a large quantity of the synthetic drug fentanyl, other drugs and several other items in a hatch at the daycare where a one-year-old child died from exposure to the opioid. Police said the amount of drugs found could have killed 500,000 people, according to the BBC.
The daycare owner, Grei Mendez, and her tenant, Carlisto Acevedo Brito, are facing federal charges of possession of narcotics with intent to distribute resulting in death, and conspiracy charges after they were formally sentenced Thursday indicted by a grand jury. If convicted, both suspects could face life in prison.
Last week, one-year-old Nicholas Dominici, who went to the Divino Niño shelter a week ago, died of a suspected drug overdose. Authorities found fentanyl under the carpet where the children slept. Three other children were taken to hospital after also being exposed to the drug. Analysis of the urine of one of the children confirmed the presence of the opioid.
Surveillance footage and phone records show Grei Mendez called her husband several times after finding the children and before calling 911. The man arrived on the scene and left with several shopping bags.
Grei Mendez is also said to have deleted about 20,000 messages from her cell phone before she was detained, but authorities managed to retrieve them.
Source: DN
