The owner of a nursery in New York City and a tenant living in the building have been arrested after a one-year-old boy died and three others fell ill following apparent fentanyl exposure.
The arrests come after authorities discovered four children – aged eight months to two years – showing signs of suspected opioid overdose after spending time at Divino Nino in the Bronx, just days after it passed a city inspection.
Nicholas Dominici, one, was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
Three others were revived after medics gave them 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.
Mendez claimed she had no knowledge of the highly potent drug being on the premises.
Police said they found a taped package containing several thousand dollars worth of fentanyl along with a kilo press – a device used to package large quantities of drugs – after executing a search warrant on the nursery, a home-based operation which opened in the Kingsbridge section of the Bronx earlier this year.
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The drug was found near a mat where the children had napped, Joseph Kenny, the New York Police Department’s chief of detectives, said at a news conference Monday evening.
A second press was found inside the adjoining room occupied by Brito, according to a criminal complaint.
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The day care facility opened in January of this year. It passed both of its inspections, authorities said, including a surprise visit made by inspectors earlier this month.
One resident said it was “obvious” the day care was a drug front telling the New York Post: “It was a day-care for a year with no children. For one year, she had a day-care with no children but people go in. But no babies?
“A day-care with no children and men coming in and out. Yes, we knew something. We knew something, something was not good happening there.”
Nicholas’s parents, Zoila Dominici and Otoniel Feliz, said their son began attending the nursery a week ago.
“He was so intelligent. He would repeat everything you would say to him,” Ms Dominici said.
“He had so much love. Everyone who knew him appreciated him, all of our neighbours.”
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 which can be 50 times stronger than heroin.
At a press conference on Saturday, mayor Eric Adams said Nicholas’s death underscores the 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,” he said.
“The mere contact is deadly for an adult and it’s extremely deadly for a child.”
The city’s medical examiner is investigating Nicholas’s cause of death.
Eight people have died and another eight were critically injured after a bus carrying farm workers crashed and overturned in Florida.
The bus was transporting 53 workers when it collided with a pickup truck in Marion County, north of Orlando, the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) said.
The bus then swerved off State Road 40 – a hilly two-lane road that goes through farms – and crashed through a fence, before overturning, authorities said.
The incident took place at 6.35am local time on Tuesday and it is unclear why the two vehicles crashed.
A total of 40 people needed hospital treatment – eight of whom are in a critical condition, the Marion County Fire Rescue confirmed to NBC News.
The driver of the truck was also taken to hospital and more than 30 ambulances attended the scene, NBC News added.
Lieutenant Pat Riordan, from the FHP, told reporters some of those injured are “in very serious condition” and there’s a “high probability” the number of dead could rise.
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“At this point, we are conducting a massive traffic homicide investigation,” he said.
Torrential rain and thunderstorms have hit some US regions in recent days – including Marion County – and authorities will be investigating if the weather contributed to the collision.
Photographs from the scene show the bus on its side, with both its rear emergency door and top hatch open.
The farm workers were being transported to Cannon Farms in Dunnellon, where watermelon harvesting has been taking place.
Following the crash, a post on the farm’s social media account said it will “be closed today out of respect to the losses and injuries endured early this morning”.
“Please pray with us for the families and the loved ones involved in this tragic accident,” the post continued. “We appreciate your understanding at this difficult time.”
Cannon Farms is a family-owned business that has been operational for more than 100 years, according to its website.
They now focus on peanuts and watermelons, which they supply to grocery stores across the US and Canada.
The vehicle transporting the workers was a 2010 International Bus and the pickup truck was a 2001 Ford Ranger, authorities said.
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2:46
Hear Trump and his lawyer discuss hush money
The court also heard a recording of a conversation between Mr Trump and Mr Cohen over hush money said to have been paid to another woman, former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who he also allegedly had an affair with.
Mr Cohen suggests in the recording setting up another company to repay David Pecker – who said he provided the $150,000 to cover up the story.
The former National Enquirer boss previously testified he bought the story to keep it hidden and eventually decided against seeking reimbursement.
Later in the recording, Mr Trump can be heard suggesting the $150,000 might be better off being paid in cash.
Mr Cohen told the court this was to “avoid any type of paper transaction”.
The 57-year-old – who once said he would take a bullet for Mr Trump – worked for him for nearly a decade.
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He pleaded guilty to violating campaign finance law in 2018 over the Stormy Daniels payment and was jailed, but at the time prosecutors did not bring charges against Mr Trump.
Mr Cohen’s credibility is in the sights of defence lawyers as he has previously admitted lying under oath.
Mr Trump – who will take on Joe Biden in his bid to become president again in November – is unlikely to face a custodial sentence if found guilty.
His other cases are potentially more damaging but mired in delays.
They concern allegations of keeping stacks of secret documents after leaving office and trying to overturn his 2020 election defeat. He denies the claims.
A livestream portal between Dublin and New York was temporarily shut down after “inappropriate behaviour” in the Irish capital.
Thousands of people have visited the two-way portal, which allows people on either side to see and interact with each other.
And while there have been a number of wholesome moments – including Irish dancing and even a proposal – a handful of people have behaved “inappropriately”, Dublin City Council has said.
Videos on social media have shown people on the Irish side flashing body parts, and displaying images of 9/11 and swear words on phone screens.
A woman was also escorted away by police after being seen grinding against the portal.
In a statement issued on Monday evening, a spokesperson for Dublin City Council said “technical solutions” to address this are being implemented in the next 24 hours.
“We will continue to monitor the situation over the coming days with our partners in New York to ensure that Portals continue to deliver a positive experience for both cities and the world,” they said.
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“The team at portals.org and partners are still working on improving the software for better stability and to prepare for Portals to expand to more locations on Earth.
“Those works are being done mostly at night and during those hours, the livestream might be paused.”
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Dublin City Council noted there has been an increase in footfall since the Portal was unveiled in north Dublin, facing O’Connell Street. The New York portal is at the busy Manhattan junction of Broadway, Fifth Avenue and 23rd Street.
“The overwhelming majority of interactions are positive,” the spokesperson added. “We have seen families and friends unite, dancing moves being shared as well as new friendships being made. There was even a successful marriage proposal.
“The Portal offers a window to other cities and is connecting people and cultures in a unique manner – what we are seeing between Dublin and NY is reflective of a wider narrative of cultural behaviour.”
The Portals Organisation said: “We do not intend to suggest people to interact with Portals in any particular way – our goal is to open a window between far away places and cultures that allows people to interact freely with one another.
“We encourage people to be respectful and from our position as observers, we see that the absolute majority of experiences is on the bright side.”
In an earlier statement, they confirmed the livestream had been paused so they could “update the software used on the Portal”.