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04-04-2007, 10:33 AM
Family believes teen's death may be tied to 'cheese' heroin
Case investigated as possible overdose; fatality could be 5th linked to drug
08:09 AM CDT on Wednesday, April 4, 2007
By SERGIO CHAPA / Al Día
schapa@aldiatx.com
"Cheese" heroin may have claimed the life of a 15-year-old Molina High School student, family members said Tuesday.
Also Online
Parents' guide to 'cheese': Information, stories and video
A Dallas police report shows that Fernando Cortez Jr. died at a home off Sylvia Drive near White Rock Lake between midnight Friday and 11:30 a.m. Saturday.
The boy's father, Fernando Cortez Sr., said he believes his son died from an overdose of the drug. Mr. Cortez said the family received information that his son had been given the drug at school.
"I don't know my son took that stuff," the grieving father said outside his sister's home Tuesday. "I just want these kids to know not to take it."
Sgt. Eugene Reyes with the Dallas Police Department said authorities are investigating Fernando's death as a possible cheese-related overdose. Police are waiting for autopsy results to determine if the drug killed the teenager.
Cheese is black tar heroin mixed with crushed Tylenol PM or any similar cold tablets with a sleep aid, police say. The drug has spread quickest in a cluster of northwest Dallas middle and high schools, where it is bought, sold and typically snorted.
It has claimed at least four youths in Dallas County since spring 2006, and authorities say there have been limited reports of its spread to the suburbs. A month ago, police arrested a man in northwest Dallas with $14,000 worth of black tar heroin who was thought to be a major supplier to the cheese "mixers," and more arrests are expected.
If toxicology tests, which take about a month, confirm that Fernando died from cheese, he would be the fifth publicized fatality, although authorities suspect there could be more.
The last confirmed death was Oscar Gutierrez, 15, an eighth-grader at Marsh Middle School in Dallas. He was found dead in his bed Feb. 18 after a night of partying. His parents had suspected he overdosed on cheese, which he was known to use, and toxicology tests confirmed that weeks later.
Mr. Cortez said his son had many friends at Molina High School and that many of them plan to attend the boy's funeral this morning. "It's a terrible loss to the family," he said. "Everyone's taking it pretty hard."
A Dallas police report shows that Fernando left his Oak Cliff home on Friday and spent the night at a home in the 10400 block of Sylvia Drive belonging to the grandfather of his sister's boyfriend.
The boy's sister told police that she found her brother's body with foam coming out of his mouth at 11:30 a.m. Saturday.
The girl told police that after she picked up Fernando on Friday night, he was staggering and appeared to be intoxicated. She last saw her brother alive about midnight Friday.
The boy's aunt Cynthia Cortez Medina said that she raised her nephew and that he grew up in a good home near Arcadia Park in Oak Cliff.
"We grew up in a Christian home because both my parents were pastors," she said.
Ms. Medina said that she and her family are puzzled by her nephew's death and that they even talked to him about cheese heroin.
"He knew about it," she said. "We watched it on the news."
Community activist Carlos Quintanilla said pressure from authorities may be pushing the drug into other areas or students who transfer from those schools are bringing the drug to their new schools.
"We're getting calls from kids asking for detox from Mesquite and Pleasant Grove," Mr. Quintanilla said. "The new hot spots in Oak Cliff are Molina High School, Arcadia Park and Village Fair."
Although police did not return calls seeking comment, Mr. Quintanilla said he and his supporters are calling for a criminal investigation into Fernando's death.
"The kid who gave it to him needs to be arrested," Mr. Quintanilla said. "We want this as a homicide investigation."
Staff writer Jason Trahan contributed to this report.
Case investigated as possible overdose; fatality could be 5th linked to drug
08:09 AM CDT on Wednesday, April 4, 2007
By SERGIO CHAPA / Al Día
schapa@aldiatx.com
"Cheese" heroin may have claimed the life of a 15-year-old Molina High School student, family members said Tuesday.
Also Online
Parents' guide to 'cheese': Information, stories and video
A Dallas police report shows that Fernando Cortez Jr. died at a home off Sylvia Drive near White Rock Lake between midnight Friday and 11:30 a.m. Saturday.
The boy's father, Fernando Cortez Sr., said he believes his son died from an overdose of the drug. Mr. Cortez said the family received information that his son had been given the drug at school.
"I don't know my son took that stuff," the grieving father said outside his sister's home Tuesday. "I just want these kids to know not to take it."
Sgt. Eugene Reyes with the Dallas Police Department said authorities are investigating Fernando's death as a possible cheese-related overdose. Police are waiting for autopsy results to determine if the drug killed the teenager.
Cheese is black tar heroin mixed with crushed Tylenol PM or any similar cold tablets with a sleep aid, police say. The drug has spread quickest in a cluster of northwest Dallas middle and high schools, where it is bought, sold and typically snorted.
It has claimed at least four youths in Dallas County since spring 2006, and authorities say there have been limited reports of its spread to the suburbs. A month ago, police arrested a man in northwest Dallas with $14,000 worth of black tar heroin who was thought to be a major supplier to the cheese "mixers," and more arrests are expected.
If toxicology tests, which take about a month, confirm that Fernando died from cheese, he would be the fifth publicized fatality, although authorities suspect there could be more.
The last confirmed death was Oscar Gutierrez, 15, an eighth-grader at Marsh Middle School in Dallas. He was found dead in his bed Feb. 18 after a night of partying. His parents had suspected he overdosed on cheese, which he was known to use, and toxicology tests confirmed that weeks later.
Mr. Cortez said his son had many friends at Molina High School and that many of them plan to attend the boy's funeral this morning. "It's a terrible loss to the family," he said. "Everyone's taking it pretty hard."
A Dallas police report shows that Fernando left his Oak Cliff home on Friday and spent the night at a home in the 10400 block of Sylvia Drive belonging to the grandfather of his sister's boyfriend.
The boy's sister told police that she found her brother's body with foam coming out of his mouth at 11:30 a.m. Saturday.
The girl told police that after she picked up Fernando on Friday night, he was staggering and appeared to be intoxicated. She last saw her brother alive about midnight Friday.
The boy's aunt Cynthia Cortez Medina said that she raised her nephew and that he grew up in a good home near Arcadia Park in Oak Cliff.
"We grew up in a Christian home because both my parents were pastors," she said.
Ms. Medina said that she and her family are puzzled by her nephew's death and that they even talked to him about cheese heroin.
"He knew about it," she said. "We watched it on the news."
Community activist Carlos Quintanilla said pressure from authorities may be pushing the drug into other areas or students who transfer from those schools are bringing the drug to their new schools.
"We're getting calls from kids asking for detox from Mesquite and Pleasant Grove," Mr. Quintanilla said. "The new hot spots in Oak Cliff are Molina High School, Arcadia Park and Village Fair."
Although police did not return calls seeking comment, Mr. Quintanilla said he and his supporters are calling for a criminal investigation into Fernando's death.
"The kid who gave it to him needs to be arrested," Mr. Quintanilla said. "We want this as a homicide investigation."
Staff writer Jason Trahan contributed to this report.