Winnipeg parents charged with manslaughter in fentanyl death of 1-year-old girl

Winnipeg police have charged two parents with manslaughter after their one-year-old daughter died from fentanyl intoxication in March 2023.

A 38-year-old man and a 37-year-old woman were arrested at their home on McKenzie Street on Friday, police said in a news release Monday.

The Winnipeg Police Service child abuse unit started investigating the death on March 23, after a man called 911 and told police his child had become unresponsive at their home, police said.

Winnipeg fire paramedics responded and administered CPR to the child before she was taken to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Both parents were arrested for criminal negligence causing death, and the man was also charged with possession of a controlled substance after officers found a small amount of fentanyl on him when he was arrested. They were later released.

Autopsy and toxicology reports found that the girl died from “high levels of fentanyl intoxication,” police said in the news release.

During the investigation, the parents gave little detail about the child’s death, although police allege they knew their daughter had been exposed to fentanyl before the man called 911.

The parents are now in custody.

Police are holding a news conference about the investigation on Monday morning.

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