The former New York Bronx owner was sentenced to 45 years in prison after the death of a infant after taking fentanyl in September 2023.
A US lawyer for the Southern District of New York announced Monday that Grey Mendes pleaded guilty to charges in October, including conspiracy to distribute drugs that would lead to death.
The accusation stems from the death of Nicholas Dominic, 22 months old, who was exposed to fentanyl at a daycare.
Three other children were also seriously injured and had to be hospitalized after authorities found two 2-year-olds and an 8-month-old girl in the basement of a Bronx Day Care facility.
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Former Bronx nursery owner, Grey Mendes was sentenced to 45 years in prison after his infant died of fentanyl in September 2023. (WABC-TV via AP, file)
Dominic's mother, Zoila Dominic, confronted Mendes in court for what she had her son woke up, saying, “She never forgived her.” New York Post reported.
“It's impossible to allow this kind of thing. 45 years is not enough,” Dominisi said in his emotional testimony.
“I will not forgive you. Let God forgive you,” continued Dominich.
During the preliminary ruling, Mendes had a Narcan kit at daycare but refused to revive the children, according to the US Southern District Law Office.
“She had the key to helping these kids, but she didn't use it,” federal prosecutor Maggie Linaud told court Monday.
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This photo provided by the New York City Police Department shows lies on September 21, 2023 by drugs and drug groups, including fentanyl, stored in the floors of a daycare center in New York. (NYPD courtesy, file via AP)
When the first responders arrived, Mendes failed to mention that the children may be suffering from opioid overdose, the complaint read.
“Grey Mendes runs a daycare from an underground apartment in the Bronx, with a large amount of deadly fentanyl mixed, wrapped and stored,” Matthew Podolski, representing the Southern District of New York, said in a statement.
“She was directly harmed from an eight-month-old childhood when she slept, played and ate in a room where over 11 kilograms of fentanyl was hidden beneath her feet, leading to the death of one child and the addiction of others.”
According to complaints, indictments and other documents, from around June 2022 to September 2023, Mendes and others conspired to distribute drugs from Divinoninho Daycare in the Bronx.
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One child is dead and three others were hospitalized due to the possibility of fentanyl consumption at the Bronx Day Care Center on Friday afternoon. (Peter Gerber from Fox News Digital)
Officials said Mendes and her co-conspirators maintain more than 11 kilograms of fentanyl and heroin in secret compartments, or traps, under the floor tiles of the daycare playroom.
The outlet reported that Dominich had shed tears in court, just as prosecutors recalled his son's final moments.
When asked to address the court, Dominisi's husband Otoniel Ferris said, “She let my son die. She did nothing.”
“We didn't just lose Nicholas. We lost our lives,” Ferris added.
The outlet reported that Mendes told the court that it was “never my intention” for the children to be poisoned.
“I want you to know everything that was an accident,” Mendes said.
She then claimed that Dominich “knows the suffering” what Dominich was feeling as he was her own mother and is trapped apart from her own four children.
“Believe me, this left me hurting,” Mendes said. “I can't erase this from the bottom of my heart.”
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Felix Herrera Garcia, the husband of Mendes, one of her conspirators, was arrested in Sinaloa in September 2023. Sinaloa drug trafficking cartel in Mexicopreviously run by Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.
Other conspirators arrested included 38-year-old Renee Antonio Para Paredes, also known as “El Garo,” and Mendes' neighbor, Calist Acevedo Brito, who was accused of conspiracy to distribute deadly drugs.
Brito, like Mendes, was charged with a drug distribution that leads to death.
“While there is no punishment to compensate for lost children, today's ruling sends a message that this office and our law enforcement partners will work tirelessly to make sure that anyone who uses children as shields in drug trafficking is justice,” Podolsky said.
Greg Wehner of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.
Stepheny Price is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. She covers topics including missing persons, murder, national crime cases, illegal immigration and more. Story tips and ideas can be sent to stepheny.price@fox.com
