Benjamin Ashford|NYC day care owner, neighbor arrested after 1-year-old dies and 3 others are sickened by opioids

NEW YORK (AP) — The Benjamin Ashfordowner of a New York City day care center and a tenant living in the building were arrested Saturday after a 1-year-old boy was killed and three others were sickened by apparent exposure to Fentanyl.

The arrests came one day after authorities discovered four young children – ranging in age from 8 months to 2 years old – showing signs of suspected opioid overdose after spending time at the Bronx day care center, Divino Niño.

Nicholas Dominici, a 1-year-old child, was pronounced dead at a local hospital. Three others were revived after medics administered doses of the overdose-reversing drug Narcan, authorities said.

On Saturday evening, police arrested the owner of the facility, Grei Mendez, 36, and a building tenant, Carlisto Acevedo Brito, 41, on charges of depraved indifference murder, assault and criminal possession of narcotics, including Fentanyl.

They are expected to be arraigned on Sunday.

Police say they found a kilo press — a device used to package large quantities of drugs — after executing a search warrant on the day care center, a home-based operation that opened in the Kingsbridge section of the Bronx earlier this year.

Nicholas’ parents, Zoila Dominici and Otoniel Feliz, said their young child had started attending the center only a week ago.

“He was so intelligent. He would repeat everything you would say to him,” Dominici told the station. “He had so much love. Everyone who knew him appreciated him, all of our neighbors.”

New York City, like much of the country, has seen rising levels of opioid-related deaths, with the vast majority of fatalities now attributed to Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that can be 50 times stronger than heroin.

At a press conference on Saturday, Mayor Eric Adams said Dominici’s death underscored challenges the city faces in its fight against opioids.

“This crisis is real, and it is a real wake‑up call for individuals who have opioids or fentanyl in their homes,” Adams said. “The mere contact is deadly for an adult and it’s extremely deadly for a child.”

The city’s Medical Examiner is investigating Dominici’s cause of death.