ARLINGTON, Va. — Police have arrested a 19-year-old Virginia man and juvenile in connection to a fentanyl overdose investigation at Wakefield High School. The pair are believed to have supplied drugs to two girls at the school who overdosed and then were revived.
At 11:45 a.m. on Sept. 27, officers were dispatched to the high school on S. Dinwiddie Street for a report of an overdose. At the school, officers located two students who were suffering from an apparent fentanyl overdose. One girl was given a dose of Narcan, and both were taken to an area hospital for treatment. Both girls have since recovered.
Arlington County Public Schools sent the following message to parents regarding the overdoses on September 27:
This message is to inform you that emergency personnel responded to Wakefield briefly today to assist with a medical incident involving students. The families of the students were notified. As some of our students observed the first responders in our building, we wanted to ensure you are aware that the incident was resolved, and everyone is safe.
An investigation helped identify Walter Zelaya Padilla as the person suspected of supplying the drugs to the arrested juvenile who then gave the drugs to the victims.
Padilla, 19, of Fairfax, is charged with the Distribution of Fentanyl to a Person Under the Age of 18, Distribution of Narcotics in a School Zone, Conspiracy to Distribute Narcotics (Fentanyl), and Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor. He is being held without bond in the Arlington County Detention Facility.
In addition, police charged a juvenile male, from Arlington, with Distribution of Fentanyl, Distribution of Narcotics (Fentanyl) in a School Zone, and Conspiracy to Distribute Narcotics (Fentanyl).
These arrests come after two students died from suspected overdoses at the same school this past year, says the NAACP Arlington Branch.
Freshman Sergio Flores died in February after he was reportedly found unconscious in a Wakefield High School bathroom.
In September, 9th grader Jorge Chavarris Rodriguez died off of school property. In an interview with WUSA9, his mother said police told her he had likely overdosed from Fentanyl, but that they had to wait on the results of his autopsy.
Those results could take 8 to 12 weeks, according to police.
As of September 28, data from Arlington County shows there have been 17 fatal opioid overdoses across the county and 37 non-fatal overdoses.
The Arlington Addiction Recovery Initiative holds Narcan, a brand of Naloxone, training frequently.
The next training will be on Wednesday, October 4. You can attend the training virtually at 12 p.m. or 7 p.m. To register for virtual training, email: narcan@arlingtonva.us.
To attend in person, you can stop by 2100 Washington Boulevard in Arlington anytime between 3 p.m. - 6 p.m. The training takes 5-10 minutes and registration is not required.
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