Wisconsin man sentenced in fentanyl death of toddler in Allentown
ALLENTOWN, Pa. — A Wisconsin man has been sentenced to state prison in connection with the fentanyl-related death of his 22-month-old son in Allentown, Lehigh County District Attorney Gavin P. Holihan announced Monday.
Jorge Suarez-Santiago, 33, of Milwaukee, pleaded guilty earlier this year to charges of involuntary manslaughter, endangering the welfare of a child, and possession of a controlled substance. He was sentenced Monday to serve five to 15 years in state prison by Lehigh County Judge Anna-Kristie M. Marks.
Suarez-Santiago’s son, Johansy Suarez-Rivas, was pronounced dead on April 5, 2021, at St. Luke’s Hospital, Sacred Heart campus, after police were called for a report of a toddler who was not breathing.
A forensic pathologist determined the child died from fentanyl toxicity. The level of fentanyl in his blood was measured at 16.5 nanograms per milliliter.
Prosecutors said both Suarez-Santiago and the child’s mother, Jayleen Rivas-Rodriguez, had used heroin in the hours leading up to their son’s death. Rivas-Rodriguez reportedly left their apartment on North Eighth Street that day with two other children, leaving Johansy in the care of Suarez-Santiago, who was visibly intoxicated at the time.
According to the investigation, Rivas-Rodriguez had given Suarez-Santiago what she believed to be heroin before leaving. When she returned home hours later, she found her son unresponsive.
Authorities said Johansy was exposed to and ingested a fatal dose of fentanyl while in the care of his parents, who both “consciously disregarded the high risk that their reckless use and handling of illegal narcotics was likely to cause death or serious bodily injury.”
Rivas-Rodriguez, 36, was previously sentenced in May to a five-to-15-year prison term after pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter and endangering the welfare of a child.
The case was investigated by Allentown Police Detective Joseph Beiner and the Lehigh County Coroner’s Office. District Attorney Holihan and Chief Deputy District Attorney Sara A. Moyer prosecuted it.
