Fentanyl poisoning confirmed in death of Northern California jail inmate, sheriff says
A Northern California jail inmate died last month of fentanyl poisoning, sheriff’s officials announced following the completion of a toxicology report.
The inmate, identified as Matthew D. Perez, suffered a medical emergency at the Yuba County Jail in Marysville on Nov. 2, the Yuba County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.
Paramedics attempted life-saving measures including “repeated” doses of naloxone, used to reverse opioid overdoses, but Perez was pronounced dead at a hospital, the Sheriff’s Office said.
The coroner’s toxicology report confirmed Perez died of fentanyl poisoning, according to the news release.
The Sheriff’s Office said it continues to investigate how the drug made its way into the jail. Beginning next year, the jail will use a new “body scanner” on every person who enters the jail facility, according to the sheriff’s news release, in order to screen for drugs and other items.
Perez had been in jail since August on a charge of probation violation, Yuba Superior Court records show.
