Child, 10, Hospitalized After Suspected Fentanyl Overdose At FL Hotel: Sheriff

FORT MYERS, FL — A 10-year-old was hospitalized for a suspected fentanyl overdose after deputies found the child unresponsive and not breathing at a Fort Myers hotel on Aug. 12, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release on Saturday.

Investigators later found fentanyl and drug paraphernalia in the room, “within arm’s reach of the child,” and two people were arrested, the agency said.

Deputies responded to the Quality Suites in Fort Myers for what initially was reported as a medical emergency.

When they arrived, they found the 10-year-old unconscious and not breathing with a faint pulse, the sheriff’s office said.

Deputies administered Narcan, a medication used to reverse opioid overdoses, and the child was taken to a local hospital for treatment. The victim was believed to be suffering from a drug overdose, the sheriff’s office said.

Robert Dillard and Tasianna Squires were detained while deputies investigated the incident, investigators said.

The agency’s Special Victims Unit and Narcotics Unit conducted a joint investigation because of the nature of the incident.

Detectives obtained a search warrant for the hotel room, and found drug paraphernalia and clear bags containing fentanyl throughout the room and inside Squires' purse, the sheriff’s office said.

They also found “trafficking amounts of fentanyl” behind the refrigerator in the room, the agency said.

The drugs and other items found in the room were accessible to children, investigators added.

Detectives ultimately determined there was probable cause to arrest both Dillard and Squires on charges of child neglect and trafficking fentanyl.

"Using and possessing these drugs is one thing — but leaving them within arm's reach of a child is a whole new level of negligence," Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno said.

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