Fentanyl daycare incident

Fentanyl in a daycare in The Bronx, New York City caused the death of 1-year-old Nicholas Dominici on September 15, 2023, and is also believed to have caused the sickness of three other children between the ages of eight months and two years. A kilogram of fentanyl was allegedly stored under a playmat in the daycare center. According to police, the quantity of fentanyl found in the facility was enough to kill 500,000 people.

Background
The daycare center was opened in January 2023. On September 6 the daycare center had a surprise inspection, and passed. Before the death, the child had been at the daycare for one week.

Death and illnesses
On September 15, 2023, afternoon the owner of the daycare center discovered that the children would not wake up from their nap time. After making three phone calls (two to her husband), she called for emergency services. After reaching the center, emergency doctors found signs of opioid intoxication. According to surveillance footage, the husband removed multiple shopping bags from the nursery. Allegedly the two deleted about 20,000 text messages before being arrested in efforts to cover up an alleged narcotics operation. These were recovered by authorities. The husband, Felix Herrera-Garcia, fled the scene, and was found a week later in Mexico. He was found and arrested while in a bus heading for Culiacán. The three other children were admitted to hospital and given Narcan to reverse overdoses to opioids.

Investigations
On Monday September 18, 2023, an investigation was carried out in the daycare center, finding a kilogram of fentanyl placed under a playmat, and three presses used to package narcotics according to New York Police. On the same day, NYPD Chief Detective Joseph Kenny said that a kilogram of fentanyl was discovered “underneath a rug where the children were sleeping”. On 21 September, a trapdoor in the floor of the building was discovered by police. Inside was approximately 10 kilograms of drugs wrapped in the form of bricks. Drug paraphernalia was also found inside. On September 27, autopsy revealed that the cause of death of the 1-year-old was a fentanyl overdose.

Legal proceedings
The owner of the daycare center and her tenant are being federally charged with narcotics possession. Federal prosecutors allege that the death and sicknesses of the children were caused by the owner and tenant poisoning them due to a drug operation. If convicted, the owner and her husband will receive life in prison.