NEW YORK — The two people arrested in the death of toddler Nicholas Dominici at a day care facility in the Bronx are now facing federal charges.
That’s because of the amount of drugs found.
Federal officials held a news conference to discuss the federal charges at 2 p.m. Tuesday. We brought that news conference to you live on CBS News New York.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said the defendants tried to cover up the fentanyl operation before calling emergency responders.
“This is a tragedy, and my heart breaks for the children and their families. But I promise you this: We’re going to keep fighting for justice,” Williams said. “I also have a message for anyone out there selling fentanyl: Stop pushing this poison. It ruins lives.”
“In my 32 years of government service, 25 of which has been spent with the DEA, there is no more tragic news than the death of a child, and every New Yorker should be outraged,” DEA Special Agent in Charge Frank Tarentino said. “Fentanyl is the most urgent threat in our nation.”
Williams called fentanyl a “public health crisis.”
“I’m a lawyer, I’m a United States Attorney here, but I’m a father,” Williams said. “Common sense dictates when you drop off your baby, you expect your baby to be kept safe. I don’t think there’s any other way to look at it as incredibly reckless. It’s an incredibly reckless thing to do, to endanger life like that.”
We also have new photos of what police said are drugs and paraphernalia from inside the day care.
U.S Attorney’s Office
The pictures show what is alleged a kilo of fentanyl, and a kilo press, which is a device used to package narcotics.
U.S Attorney’s Office
Investigators are trying to find the husband of the Divino Nino day care’s owner.
Police sources tell CBS New York phone logs reveal Grei Mendez called her husband Friday before calling 911. We’re told police recovered video that shows the husband removing things from the basement before EMS arrived.
Watch: Adams blasts fentanyl problem after Bronx day care death
Police said they found more than two pounds of fentanyl hidden beneath the mat the children were napping on.
City officials defended their inspectors who had given the center the OK days earlier.
“I’m very sorry, but one of the things my child care inspectors are not trained to do is look for fentanyl. But maybe we need to start,” said New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Ashwin Vasan.
“That little piece, that little corner, about less than the size of a fingernail. A tenth of a size of a fingernail can kill and adult. So imagine what it could do to a child,” said Mayor Eric Adams, highlighting the drug’s potency.
Dominici, just a 1-year-old, died following the exposure. Three other children are hospitalized.
Mendez and her husband’s cousin Carlisto Acevedo Brito are under arrest on murder and drug charges.
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