A New Mexico woman has been indicted for allegedly using her children as drug mules, resulting in an overdose fatality.
Magdalena Silva Banuelos, 46, reportedly hid fentanyl inside her children’s luggage before putting them on a flight from Albuquerque to Dallas Love Field Airport, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Her two sons, aged 8 and 10, were flying to visit her boyfriend, their father, on May 31.
Surveillance video from Dallas Love Field Airport showed the father picking up the boys from the gate. He is then seen searching through their luggage before entering the airport restroom at around 10:26 p.m. He then overdosed and died in a bathroom stall.
Officials investigating the scene discovered a makeup container containing more than a gram of fentanyl.
Banuelos was ordered to be detained, pending a trial after prosecutors accused her of using the children as drug mules.
“The actions of Ms. Banuelos risked the lives of her minor children by concealing a highly potent drug in their luggage during a flight from Albuquerque to Dallas,” said W. Guy Baker from the DEA Dallas Field Division.
“I feel for these children. To lose one parent due to the actions of the other is a calamity for a child,” said U.S. Attorney Chad Meacham, according to the release.
“This defendant allegedly concealed fentanyl — a synthetic opioid 50 times more potent than heroin — in her own minor sons’ luggage. This drug has stolen too many futures and ruined too many lives. The Justice Department remains determined to hold accountable those who spread it,” he continued.
Fentanyl is a drug typically used to treat patients with chronic severe pain or severe pain following surgery. The drug is similar to morphine except that it is 100 times more potent.
It has also been found to be mixed with other drugs in recent years. Two milligrams of fentanyl can be lethal to a person depending on their body size, tolerance, and past usage.
Synthetic opioids such as fentanyl are the primary cause of drug-related deaths in the United States, according to the CDC.
During their investigation, police recovered text messages between the Banuelos and her children’s father. These messages suggested that she knew of the victim’s intent to ingest the drug and its dangers.
“Hey you need to be careful,” she wrote a few hours before he died. “Yes ma’am. Very slow and easy,” he replied.
“Just one and then wait you’ll see,” she continued. “Just one.”
“No passing out on the kitchen floor,” Banuelos wrote. “No dying on the kitchen floor… It’s going to f**k you up!!!”
Following the indictment, Banuelos will go to trial. She would face a mandatory 20 years up to life in prison if convicted.