Two Fernandina Beach parents are facing charges after their 5-month-old baby died last week, with investigators suspecting fentanyl exposure may have played a role.
According to the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were called to a home on South 6th Street on June 19 in response to a cardiac arrest involving a young infant.
The child was transported to Baptist Nassau hospital, where they were later pronounced dead.
At the home, deputies observed signs of drug use in the room where the infant had been staying, including a tray with a powdery substance, lighters, a digital scale cover, and what appeared to be a freshly wiped-down area on top of a dresser.
These items were in plain view near the baby’s crib, an arrest report states.
A witness at the residence told deputies the child’s parents, Scott Irons and Melissa Irons, had been living at the home for about two months.
Schwartz said the baby had been in the parents’ bedroom before being moved to the living room while 911 was contacted.
Deputies noted that when they attempted to obtain consent from Scott and Melissa Irons to search their rooms, both individuals appeared extremely lethargic and had trouble staying awake.
During the search, detectives found a brown-and-black checkered zipper pouch in a dresser drawer inside Melissa Irons’ bedroom.
The pouch contained a syringe, a cut straw, and foil holding a purple substance that later tested positive for fentanyl.
Melissa and Scott Irons were both arrested and booked on charges of possession of a controlled substance.
The sheriff’s office said additional charges could be filed pending the results of the child’s autopsy.
