Garner man charged after infant daughter overdoses on heroin

GARNER, NC (WTVD) -- A Wake County father is charged with neglect after his 9-month-old daughter died from an overdose of heroin and fentanyl.

Albert Gaines Jr. is facing a charge of negligent child abuse resulting in serious bodily injury.

It happened the week before Thanksgiving at a Garner apartment complex on Westcroft Drive.

Police say they were called to the apartment where the girl was found unresponsive.

She later died.

The investigation led police to initially charge Gaines with possession of a firearm by a felon and then trafficking in heroin.

Investigators said when the recently completed toxicology report from the child's autopsy showed she died from ingesting the drug mixture, they again charged Gaines.

Garner Police Capt. Joe Binns told ABC11 that the child was in bed with her father while he slept, but he left the drugs unsecured and she ate some.

"It makes you sick to your stomach that a 9-month-old just defenseless you know will never grow up. So we're there and that's what our part is to make sure that we seek some justice for this child," Binns said.

He added that the child's mother, who was not at home at the time, has also been charged with trafficking heroin.

He says the investigation is still underway and more charges could be coming.

After Gaines faced a judge for the first time Monday afternoon, his attorney told reporters that the criminal charges are not his client's primary focus.

"Mr. Gaines is doing everything he can to cope with the loss of his child at this point and we'll look into the case some more but at this point that's his primary concern is the loss of his daughter," attorney James Little told ABC11.