DENVER — A mother was sentenced to 22 years behind bars after she pleaded guilty to charges related to the 2022 fentanyl poisoning death of her toddler.
Nicole Casias pleaded guilty to one count of child abuse knowingly/recklessly causing death and one count of possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute in May. Tuesday morning an Adams County District judge sentenced her to 22 years in the Department of Corrections.
Police officers were called to the family's home in Brighton around 2 p.m. on Jan. 2, 2022, after 22-month-old Aviyana Montoya was found unresponsive and not breathing. An arrest affidavit said that Aviyana was left unattended for nearly 14 hours and that surveillance video from inside the apartment recorded the young girl crying loudly and in pain multiple times throughout the night.
An autopsy said both methamphetamine and fentanyl were found in Aviyana's blood. The amount of fentanyl was 10 times the amount of fentanyl necessary to kill an intolerant adult user, according to the coroner.
In September 2022, a grand jury indicted Casias and the child's father, Alonzo Montoya, on charges including first-degree murder. The first-degree murder charges were challenged and later dismissed.
According to the DA's office, the two participated in illicit drug activity with the child present in the home prior to and after her death.
Montoya was found guilty of five counts, including child abuse recklessly causing death, in January. He was sentenced in April to 40 years in prison.