Deadly Bronx daycare operators fed kids with fentanyl-laced utensils, prosecutors say

The husband of a Bronx day care owner was sentenced to decades in prison on Wednesday for his role in operating a fentanyl ring out of the facility which led to a toddler’s death last year.

Felix Herrera Garcia, 35, faces 45 years in prison and an additional five years of supervised release, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

In a statement, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said Herrera Garcia “recklessly” put babies at risk of fentanyl exposure from October 2022 to September 2023.

“This case demonstrates the deadly reach and scope of the fentanyl epidemic, and the profound damage it inflicts on American lives, including the lives of the most vulnerable among us,” he said.

The death of 22-month-old Nicholas Dominici reverberated throughout the Bronx and the city, which was already facing a crisis of fentanyl overdoses along with soaring costs of child care. Herrera Garcia’s wife, 36-year-old Grei Mendez, ran the Divino Niño day care out of a basement apartment in a building on Morris Avenue in Kingsbridge — the type many working parents rely on to watch their children. Newly released court documents indicate the family operating the daycare used the same cooking utensils to package drugs that they used to feed the children in their care — and had actually experienced fentanyl poisoning themselves prior to the fatal incident in September of last year.

Though it had recently passed an inspection, investigators discovered large quantities of fentanyl hidden around the facility after three toddlers didn’t wake up from their naps on Sept. 15, 2023. Officials later determined the children had somehow ingested a little bit of the deadly drug and Dominici could not be revived. A fourth child who’d been picked up earlier that day was also brought to a hospital because he was acting lethargic and unresponsive.

On the day his trial was supposed to start in June, Herrera Garcia pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute narcotics resulting in death and serious bodily injury, one count of possession with intent to distribute narcotics resulting in death, and one count of possession with intent to distribute narcotics resulting in serious bodily injury.

Two weeks earlier, his co-conspirator Renny Antonio Parra Paredes also pleaded guilty in connection with his role in distributing narcotics from the facility. Herrera Garcia’s cousin, Carlisto Acevedo Brito, was renting a room in the apartment that housed the day care and was also charged with murder, manslaughter, drug possession and child endangerment.

According to Williams’ office, the defendants were hiding a total of 11 kilograms of fentanyl and heroin in secret compartments, or traps, underneath the floor tiles in the playroom where the children played, ate and slept every day.

Court documents revealed new details about how the children may have come into contact with the fentanyl, describing how Herrera Garcia and his co-conspirators used the same bowls, pans and sponges in their kitchen to package the drugs and prepare food for the kids.

Two nights before the incident, the documents state that Herrera Garcia and Parra Paredes were in the day care packaging narcotics for approximately six hours, starting just after the children had been picked up.

The documents also describe previous incidents where Herrera Garcia and others in his family were affected by the powerful drugs they were selling. In October 2022, Herrera Garcia’s own brother apparently died of fentanyl poisoning while packaging drugs in another Bronx apartment. The documents state that Herrera Garcia simply combined his brother’s stash with his own at the day care, and continued on.

On other occasions, according to the documents, Herrera Garcia, Mendez and their own toddler experienced bouts of vomiting consistent with opioid exposure – and once even had to take their son to the hospital. Text messages were also revealed that indicated they tried to limit how much time their son spent in the day care apartment.

As his wife and cousin were arrested, Herrera Garcia fled to Mexico. He was later apprehended and brought back to New York.

The tragedy shocked the community, where home day care facilities are commonly relied upon by working parents. More than a year later, at least one day care provider in the area said inspections had become more frequent and more thorough, but officials didn’t provide a specific number.

But Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson told Gothamist that substance abuse – and fentanyl specifically – remains a major challenge. Drug Enforcement Administration officials said the infrastructure and location of the Bronx amid several major highways makes it an ideal place to traffic the potent drug.

Mendez has pleaded not guilty, and is awaiting trial in federal court next month.

Herrera Garcia’s lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This story has been updated with new information.