Montgomery County police have arrested a mother and her boyfriend for the death of the mother’s 6-year-old son.

Police say 31-year-old Kristen Sabatino and 35-year-old Matthew Santiago were charged with Involuntary Manslaughter and Endangering the Welfare of a Child after Sabatino’s 6-year-old son was found dead from a Fentynl and Xylazine overdose.

On Sunday, July 16 at 12:38 p.m. police were called to a home on the 1000 block of Willow Street in Norristown for a report of an unconscious boy who was not breathing.

When medics arrived they found 6-year-old Dominic Lyons in his bedroom deceased.

An autopsy was performed and testing of the boy’s blood found high levels of fentanyl and Tranq. The autopsy confirmed that the boy had ingested the drugs because such a high amount in his blood could not be caused by trace contact.

Norristown Police and Montgomery County Detectives launched a joint homicide investigation which found that both Sabatino and Santiago had a history of drug use.

Through cell phone records, interviews, and other investigative methods, police revealed that Sabatino and Santiago had purchased and consumed illegal drugs in the days leading up to the boy’s death.

When asked, Sabatino and Santiago said they put the boy to bed at 7:30 p.m. because “he did not feel well”. The next day they found the boy dead in his bunk bed in the afternoon and called 911.

Santiago was arrested on October 25 and arraigned on $1 million cash bail with a condition of no unsupervised contact with a minor and compliance with the Office of Children and Youth. Santiago could not make bail and is now at the Montgomery County Correctional Facility.

Sabatino was arrested on October 27 at a hotel in Lancaster by Lancaster Police and is currently awaiting transfer to the Montgomery County Correctional Facility where she will be arraigned and her bail amount will be set.

A preliminary hearing for Santiago is scheduled for November 3, 2023.