MANSFIELD, Texas — Two suspects have been charged in a case of a 2-year-old child who appears to have overdosed on fentanyl, Mansfield police say.
Michael Reed, the 26-year-old father of the child, was charged with causing serious bodily injury to a child, a first degree felony, and Jamie Popovic, 30, was charged with abandoning/endangering a child, a state jail felony, affidavits show.
Police were called about the child on Feb. 18 to the apartment where Reed and Popovic were living along with another roommate. Popovic, Reed's sister, said she came home from a Chili's at about 8 p.m. or 9 p.m. and found the child laying on the floor, and knew something was wrong because she was limp and had labored breathing, the affidavit states.
The affidavit details that police noticed a discrepancy, as there was an hour not accounted for since the 911 call didn't come in until 10:17 p.m. Reed told police he had been searching how to make a child throw up, the report states, and even stuck his finger down her throat to try to make her throw up. Popovic reportedly said he wanted to call police but said Reed told her not to because he feared he would lose his kids, the affidavit states.
Reed and Popovic's roommate said it wasn't unusual for the child to roam the apartment without any guidance, and that Reed told him not to call police, the affidavit states. Popovic added that she had seen blue and white pills lying around the apartment. A pill found near the child tested positive for fentanyl, officials say.
While searching the apartment, police also found a scale near marijuana, as well as white pills, cash and baggies used to store the marijuana, according to the affidavit. There was also reportedly a loaded gun on a kitchen cabinet, officials say.
The affidavit alleges that, according to Reed's YouTube search history, he didn't call for help for two hours, and didn't call 911 until his daughter stopped breathing.