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Robert Wichowski, 31, and Xiomara Frias-Barbosa, 28, were taken into custody on Wednesday, March 5, following a months-long investigation into the Nov. 2, 2024, overdose death of a 54-year-old man at a private residence in Hackensack, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said.
Police responded to the home at 6:36 that night and found the victim unresponsive. He was pronounced dead at the scene, and authorities noted indicators of a possible drug overdose, Musella said. Detectives later determined the man had ingested fentanyl-laced narcotics.
The Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Narcotic Task Force, working alongside Hackensack Police, traced the fatal dose back to Wichowski and Frias-Barbosa, leading to their arrests.
On March 5, law enforcement, including the Bergen County SWAT Team, Bergen County Sheriff’s Office, and Hasbrouck Heights Police Department, executed a search warrant at the suspects’ home in Hasbrouck Heights. Several hundred bags of suspected fentanyl and drug paraphernalia were seized, authorities said.
Both suspects face multiple charges, including, first-degree strict liability for drug-induced death, second-degree possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, third-degree possession and distribution of fentanyl within 1,000 feet of a school, fourth-degree possession of drug paraphernalia.
Wichowski and Frias-Barbosa are being held at the Bergen County Jail pending their first court appearance in Bergen County Superior Court in Hackensack.
Musella credited the Hackensack Police Department, Hasbrouck Heights Police Department, Bergen County Sheriff’s Office, and Garfield Police Department for their assistance in the investigation.
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