Mother, father arrested after 18-month-old dies of fentanyl overdose in Riverbank
RIVERBANK — A Riverbank mother and father are facing homicide and child abuse charges after their 18-month-old boy died of a fentanyl overdose, authorities said Friday.
The infant died on December 16, 2022. The Stanislaus County Sheriff's Office said deputies responded to a home on Newbrook Circle for a report of a baby not breathing.
The boy was later pronounced dead at Memorial Medical Center.
The mother, 25-year-old Maryanne Cazares, and the father, 31-year-old Tyler Jones, both admitted in follow-up interviews with investigators that they had fallen asleep while the child was playing on the floor. According to the sheriff's office, Jones also admitted to hiding fentanyl, other drugs and paraphernalia that were accessible by the child prior to the deputies' arrival that night.
All of those items were located during a search of the family's home.
A toxicology performed on the child showed lethal levels of fentanyl in his body, authorities said.
Cazares also had a 5-year-old daughter who was out of state at the time of her brother's death. The sheriff's office said another agency conducted a security check on the girl and located drug paraphernalia in her belongings.
Cazares was arrested on Thursday, Jan. 19, at the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Office while Jones was arrested the same day in Oakdale. Both have since been booked into the Stanislaus County Public Safety Center.