A couple from Texas have been charged with the death of three students, as well as seven overdoses of teens – some as young as 13, according to official documents. Luis Eduardo Navarette, 21, and Magaly Mejia Cano, 29, appeared in court this week accused of supplying teenage drug dealers with the Class-A substance to sell to their classmates.
Investigators accuse the couple of running a fentanyl ring with their victims being middle and secondary school students.
Officers began watching Luis and Magaly’s home near R.L. Turner High School in early January, newly released court documents show.
Undercover officers said they saw Luis hand a 16-year-old something, and that the boy snorted it in their front yard last month, according to the federal complaint.
Investigators claim the pair were selling fake OxyContin and Percocet laced with fentanyl, using at least eight students between the ages of 14 and 16 to distribute the drugs to their classmates.
Recent evidence has linked the couple to at least scene overdoses of students as young as 13.
The overdoses began happening in December with the most recent happening last Wednesday when one teen died.
The death promoted law enforcement to take decisive action against the couple.
US lawyer Leigha Simonton said: “To deal fentanyl is to knowingly imperil lives. To deal fentanyl to minors — naive middle and high school students — is to shatter futures.
READ MORE: Epsom College head found dead at school alongside husband and daughter
“These defendants’ alleged actions are simply despicable.”
According to the Dallas Morning News, a 14-year-old student nearly died twice after taking a “M30” fentanyl pill, which are sold for around $10 each.
She overdosed on Christmas Eve and again in January, which left her with temporary paralysis.
The alleged drug-dealing couple used Instagram to communicate with their team of underage drug peddlers, all of whom were all around the ages of 14-16 years old – it is not known if they have been charged in the case.
Dr Julie Pittman, Nexus Recovery Center’s chief clinical officer, said she has seen a significant increase in similar incidents among teens as deaths linked to fentanyl are at an all-time high in the US.
She said: “Even if you thought you were getting OxyCodone or HydroCodone…but also it’s in the Xanax. It’s in what you think is Klonopin. It’s also in the meth. It’s in the crack. It’s in the powder cocaine and it’s in the marijuana.”
Navarette and Cano, who appeared in a federal court on Monday, are accused of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and if found guilty, could be could face up to 20 years in prison.
The school district has scheduled a meeting with parents at the school on Thursday.
Follow our social media accounts here on facebook.com/ExpressUSNews
