Officers who helped save baby overdosing on fentanyl speak out

Reporter: Jolena Esperto
Published: Updated:
Officers helping baby overdosing on fentanyl. CREDIT: FMPD

Warning: some viewers may find this video disturbing.

Officers scrambled to save a baby’s life, and thanks to their heroic efforts, he survived. WINK spoke to them for the first time.

In the bodycam video, you can see the officers doing CPR for several minutes.

By the time the EMTs arrived, the baby showed signs of life. At the hospital, they found traces of fentanyl exposure in his blood.

The mother, Mary Sinopoli, said she was driving the baby to the hospital when officers intercepted her. She’s since been arrested.

The Fort Myers police officers who saved that baby said that, first and foremost, they were thinking that they needed to save this baby’s life.

They performed CPR until paramedics arrived and remained calm, even when they had a feeling this baby had been exposed to fentanyl. No one ever expects that when trying to help a 6-month-old.

This was simply a miracle. Fentanyl kills tens of thousands of people every year.

“I think it’s wild,” said FMPD officer Darian Lutz. “I mean, I just kind of zoned out. To be honest with you, I was kind of focused on the baby and the baby itself.”

The bodycam video shows them bringing the 6-month-old boy back to life.

“The dispatcher let us know before we got there, so without even saying anything, we just worked together, done what we know to do,” said FMPD officer Zach Shifflet.

Calmly placing two fingers on the boy’s chest, steadily performing chest compressions, all while trying to figure out what led to this baby no longer breathing.

In the video, you hear Sinapoli in tears, frantically explaining her side. This was on the way to the hospital. Officers met her on the side of the road to attend to her lifeless 6-month-old after she called 911.

“I just heard crying in the background,” said Cassandra Newell, 911 operator, “and somebody said the baby’s not breathing, and then they hung up on me, so I think my thing was just to be persistent and just keep calling because I knew I had to get these people, and then the EMS as well, just to try to save their baby. It definitely tugged at my like mom’s heartstrings.”

“This affected me quite a bit while I was there,” said FMPD officer Kelley Whyt. “When I had him down on the floor doing chest compressions, so I was just looking at his face and just thinking about my daughter, like, what if it was her? I definitely went home after that and hugged her pretty tight.”

The officers said they were thankful for the 911 call operator’s persistence because fentanyl can kill fast.

The baby’s mother faces an aggravated child abuse charge.

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