The parents of the 1-year-old boy who died of a suspected fentanyl overdose at a Bronx day care are breaking their silence about the devastating news. As we previously reported, the one year old, Nicholas Dominici died and three other children possibly exposed to drugs remain hospitalized; one of them remains in critical condition.
Grei Mendez, 36, the owner of Divino Niño Daycare, and Carlisto Acevedo Brito, 41, are accused of murder, manslaughter, assault, and more drug charges. The parents, Zoila Dominici and Otoniel Feliz are still coping with the loss of their youngest son and revealed that he would’ve been gearing up to celebrate his 2nd birthday in November. While speaking with CBS news, Zoila Dominici said, “He was so intelligent. He would repeat everything you would say to him. He had so much love. Everyone who knew him appreciated him, all of our neighbors,” Dominici told CBS New York in Spanish. Calls began to come in Friday afternoon about an 8-month-old, 1-year-old, and a 2-year-old under cardiac arrest, but unfortunately, 1-year-old Nicholas did not survive. Officials announced they were found unresponsive, showing symptoms of opioid exposure. Police sources confirm Narcan was used on them.
RELATED: Heartbreaking: 1 Year Old Boy Dies Of Suspected Fentanyl Exposure At A Bronx Daycare
“We spoke to the ones who are in charge … They recommended that place and apparently complied with all of the rules. We were on a waitlist for our son to qualify. Apparently the place passed all of the inspections. Supposedly that apartment was only for day cares, but the rumor is, from what we have heard, they also rented rooms,” Feliz said in Spanish. The father, Otoniel Feliz also spoke out saying, “The hardest thing is for me to come home and open that door and not see Nicholas saying, ‘Dad, Dad.’ It is too hard. We can’t. Because the irresponsibility of people that don’t know, they don’t know that playing with drugs and leaving them where kids can reach them is too dangerous,” Feliz said.
According to the news outlet, The day care is registered under the city’s Department of Children and Family Services and has only been open since this past January. It passed a surprise inspection about a week before this. But during Friday’s investigation, authorities found a kilopress inside, which is used to package large amounts of drugs.
“We don’t know what happened in this case … but what it tells us is that the overdose crisis affects all of us, which is why it’s an all-hands-on-deck public health moment,” New York City Health Commissioner Ashwin Vasan said.
“It is a real wakeup call for individuals who have opioids or fentanyl in their homes,” Mayor Eric Adams said.
“Look at what happened. If I had known, I wouldn’t have taken him,” Dominici said. The medical examiner’s office says Nicholas’s exact cause of death is still pending.