N.Y. Day Care Provider & Husband Sentenced To 25 Years To Life Over Fentanyl Poisoning De@th OfToddler

N.Y. Day Care Provider & Husband Sentenced To 25 Years To Life Over Fentanyl Poisoning De@th Of Toddler

A #Bronx daycare provider and her husband have been sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for their roles in the fentanyl poisoning de@th of a young child.

Grei Mendez, 38, and her husband, Felix Herrera Garcia, 37, were convicted of second?degree murder and assault after a jury found them responsible for the de@th of 22?month?old Nicholas Dominici, who passed away following exposure to fentanyl at their home?based Divino Niño daycare in September 2023. Three other children, ranging in age from 8 months to 2 years, also became seriously ill from the same exposure but survived.

The investigation revealed that large quantities of fentanyl and other drugs were hidden at the daycare, including beneath the playroom floor, and processed with equipment used for the children. Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark condemned the couple’s actions in a statement released after Wednesday’s (March 4) sentencing. “A beautiful little boy d!ed, and three children aged eight months to two years became seriously ill from fentanyl poisoning,” she said. “These babies were shields to protect a narcotics operation.” Clark added, “Little Nicholas paid with his life for their greed; now Mendez and Garcia will spend the rest of their days in prison.”

Mendez and Garcia are already serving concurrent 45?year federal prison terms for narcotics trafficking related to the case.