Husband of owner of the drug-filled Bronx day care arrested in Mexico
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John Miller and Mark Morales, CNN
(CNN) — The husband of the owner and operator of the Bronx day care where a 1-year-child died of suspected fentanyl exposure has been captured by authorities in Mexico, multiple US law enforcement sources familiar with the search told CNN on Tuesday.
Felix Herrera Garcia, husband of Grei Mendez, was on a bus in the city of Sinaloa when he was taken into custody by Mexican authorities and US Drug Enforcement Administration agents Tuesday, one of the sources said.
Herrera is in the custody of US Marshals, who will handle his extradition to New York.
RELATED | Investigators find trap door at Bronx day care after deadly fentanyl exposure
Authorities in the US have made three prior arrests after 1-year-old Nicholas Dominici died earlier this month following the suspected fentanyl exposure at Divino Niño day care center. Three other children – two 2-year-old boys and an 8-month-old girl – were hospitalized after being exposed to the suspected fentanyl and suffered acute opioid intoxication, officials said.
Authorities discovered a trap floor containing drugs, including fentanyl, inside the day care, the New York Police Department announced last week.
A New York City grand jury voted Thursday to indict Mendez, 36, and Carlisto Acevedo Brito, 41, according to Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark, who didn’t specify the charges. On Monday, Renny Antonio Parra Paredes, 38, was charged in federal court in Manhattan with one count of conspiracy to distribute narcotics resulting in death.
CNN has reached out to their attorneys for comment.
In criminal complaints, authorities have alleged Herrera was seen on surveillance video running from the day care center after the overdoses with plastic bags that investigators believe contain fentanyl.
Fentanyl is a fully synthetic opioid, originally developed as a powerful anesthetic for surgery. It is also administered to alleviate severe pain associated with terminal illnesses like cancer.
The drug is up to 100 times more powerful than morphine, and just a small dose can be deadly. Illicitly produced fentanyl has been a driving factor in the number of overdose deaths in recent years.