Dad Whose Baby Died Of Fentanyl, Coke, Heroin Overdose Sentenced: DA

HOLBROOK, NY — A Holbrook father was sentenced to 5 to 15 years in prison Wednesday after exposing his 14-month-old son to a "deadly cocktail," of fentanyl, heroin and cocaine — causing the child's fatal overdose, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said.

Wilkens Adonis, 39, of Holbrook, was sentenced after pleading guilty in March to second-degree manslaughter after the death of his son Joseph Adonis, the DA said.

According to court documents and the defendant’s admissions during his guilty plea allocution, on January 3, 2024, Suffolk County Police responded to a 911 call reporting an unresponsive child at a residence in Holbrook. When they arrived, law enforcement found Adonis, his girlfriend, and their unresponsive 14-month-old son in the couple’s bedroom, Tierney said.

The toddler was taken via ambulance to Stony Brook University Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, the DA said.

When Suffolk County homicide squad detectives responded to the home to investigate, they discovered narcotics and drug paraphernalia in the bedroom where the child had been found, Tierney said. As a result, members of the Suffolk County Police Department's narcotics section were called to assist with the investigation, the DA said.

A search warrant of the apartment was executed, and law enforcement found over one-eighth ounce of a mixture of heroin and fentanyl, over one-eighth ounce of cocaine, alprazolam, methadone, drug packaging materials, digital scales, an electronic stun gun, a loaded shotgun, and a rifle; all of which were unsecured and easily accessible to Adonis' children, the DA said.

After conducting an autopsy, the Suffolk County Medical Examiner’s Office concluded that the child’s cause of death was acute mixed drug intoxication by a mixture of heroin, cocaine, and fentanyl, Tierney said.

On March 17, 2024, Adonis pleaded guilty to second-degree manslaughter, a Class C felony; fourth-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a Class C felony; and endangering the welfare of a child, a Class A misdemeanor, before Acting Supreme Court Justice Philip Goglas, Tierney said.

On Wednesday, Adonis was sentenced to 5 to 15 years in prison, the DA said. He was represented by Matthew Tuohy.

"This was a terrible tragedy," Tuohy told Patch. "My client had a hard time even speaking shortly afterward because he was so devastated."

While in jail, Adonis took drug and alcohol classes, and also completed parenting classes "because he is dedicated to turning his life around," Tuohy said. "He showed tremendous remorse, and has demonstrated that after he has served his time, he has the ability to be a good father to his children and also be a good citizen."

"The death of 14-month-old Joseph Adonis was as preventable as it was tragic," Tierney said. "Fentanyl should not be in houses where children reside. This should be a wake-up call to our state lawmakers. They need to make common sense changes to our laws to protect children."