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Coroner: Kentucky 8-year-old died from fentanyl, not allergic reaction to strawberries

Coroner: Kentucky 8-year-old died from fentanyl, not allergic reaction to strawberries
DEPARTMENT. YOU CAN LEAVE AN ANONYMOUS TIP. NEW DETAILS TONIGHT ABOUT THE DEATH OF AN EIGHT YEAR OLD BOY IN WESTERN KENTUCKY. THE HOPKINS COUNTY CORONER SAID TREY HARRIS DIED FROM FENTANYL INTOXICATION. HIS FAMILY TOLD POLICE THEY BELIEVED HE SUFFERED AN ALLERGIC REACTION AFTER EATING STRAWBERRY BARS THE NIGHT BEFORE FROM A SCHOOL FUNDRAISER. THAT PROMPTED THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT TO PUT OUT A WARNING ABOUT THE STRAWBERRIES WHILE THEY INVESTIGATE IT. THE STRAWBERRIES TESTED NEGATIVE. HARRIS’S STEPFATHER, ANTONIO PEARSON, WAS ARRESTED ON TRAFFICKING AND GUN CHARGE
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Coroner: Kentucky 8-year-old died from fentanyl, not allergic reaction to strawberries
A Kentucky 8-year-old who died last month after eating strawberries actually died of fentanyl, and his stepfather is now facing manslaughter charges. Officials were on high alert after the boy developed a rash on March 14 and died the next morning.Authorities said the child had eaten strawberries from a school fundraiser, and out of caution, the health department advised people not to eat them in case there was a link. Police said the boy's family brought him to an emergency room that night around 10:30 p.m. and were home by 1 a.m. The boy was found unresponsive when they tried to wake him up for school.Read the initial report here.According to our CBS affiliate WEVV, a coroner just released the boy's cause of death: fentanyl intoxication. The manner of death is still undetermined, so how, when or where it was ingested is still unclear.His stepfather, Antonio Person, is in the Hopkins County Jail. Days after the boy's death, on March 26, he was charged for possession of fentanyl, marijuana, a gun and more.He's now also facing manslaughter charges. It's unclear exactly when the boy ate the berries, or why anyone thought they were linked to the reaction.The strawberries were sent off for testing, and on Tuesday, officials said the berries were safe to eat if they had been properly stored. It's still also unclear why other people who ate the berries went to a hospital afterward.This story may be updated.

A Kentucky 8-year-old who died last month after eating strawberries actually died of fentanyl, and his stepfather is now facing manslaughter charges.

Officials were on high alert after the boy developed a rash on March 14 and died the next morning.

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Authorities said the child had eaten strawberries from a school fundraiser, and out of caution, the health department advised people not to eat them in case there was a link.

Police said the boy's family brought him to an emergency room that night around 10:30 p.m. and were home by 1 a.m. The boy was found unresponsive when they tried to wake him up for school.

Read the initial report here.

According to our CBS affiliate WEVV, a coroner just released the boy's cause of death: fentanyl intoxication.

The manner of death is still undetermined, so how, when or where it was ingested is still unclear.

His stepfather, Antonio Person, is in the Hopkins County Jail. Days after the boy's death, on March 26, he was charged for possession of fentanyl, marijuana, a gun and more.

Antonio Person
Hopkins County Jail
Antonio Person

He's now also facing manslaughter charges.

It's unclear exactly when the boy ate the berries, or why anyone thought they were linked to the reaction.

The strawberries were sent off for testing, and on Tuesday, officials said the berries were safe to eat if they had been properly stored.

It's still also unclear why other people who ate the berries went to a hospital afterward.

This story may be updated.