BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — A man charged with murder after his 2-year-old son died after coming in contact with fentanyl had his preliminary hearing postponed two months on Friday.
Raul Rivera, 24, is now set for a preliminary hearing — in which a judge determines if there’s sufficient evidence for the case to proceed — on April 23. He’s charged with first-degree murder and child cruelty.
According to court documents, Rivera waited hours to call for medical aid after the boy was discovered unresponsive the night of June 5 at a home on Sentido Drive.
The child, Ezekiel Rivera died from fentanyl toxicity , according to coroner’s officials. Another child in the home, Rivera’s 3-year-old son, also tested positive for fentanyl, documents said. He survived.
Deputies found a white powder and a yellow pipe in the southeast bedroom, documents said. Also found was the stem from a glass smoking pipe which had a dark residue inside.
Two days before Ezekiel’s death, the mother, who doesn’t live with him, said she told law enforcement she saw Rivera with a bag containing a white substance when she dropped the children off at his home. She has filed a claim — a precursor to a lawsuit — against the county, alleging deputies placed Ezekiel and other children “in direct harm” by allowing them to stay with Rivera despite her report.