2 Charged In Napa Teen's Fentanyl Overdose Death
NAPA, CA — Two Santa Rosa men accused of selling fentanyl to a Napa teenager are facing charges in connection with her May 2022 death, Napa County District Attorney Allison Haley announced Wednesday.
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“The filing of charges against Alan Jazeel Martinez, age 22, and Luis Fajardo Melgoza, age 20, marks the first time in Napa County law enforcement history that the Napa DA has charged a supplier of fentanyl with murder in connection with a fentanyl-related death,” said Carlos Villatoro, spokesperson for the Napa County DA’s office.
The case involves 17-year-old Monica Flores, whom family members found dead the morning of May 25, 2022, in her bedroom at their Napa home.
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It is alleged that on May 10, 2022, and again on May 16, 2022, Martinez and Melgoza sold the victim fentanyl-laced pills that killed her.
Napa police officers responded to Flores’s home the morning of her death. At the time, she was a senior at Vintage High School.
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When her death was confirmed to be an overdose from ingesting fentanyl, Napa police detectives launched an investigation that would take 11 months.
The evidence indicated Martinez and Melgoza sold Flores illegal drugs that contained fentanyl, Napa police Lt. Chris Pacheco said.
On Monday, June 5, just over a year after her death, detectives from Napa PD and the Napa County Sheriff’s Office and members of the Santa Rosa Police Department, Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office and Sonoma County Probation Department served a search warrant at a residence in the 2000 block of Pioneer Way in Santa Rosa.
After Napa SWAT officers secured the residence, detectives took Martinez into custody. Martinez was interviewed, then booked into Napa County jail.
Melgoza was already in custody in Sonoma County on an unrelated matter; he was interviewed and later transferred to Napa County jail.
“The teamwork, cooperation and assistance by all agencies involved led to a comprehensive investigation and the safe apprehension of the alleged suspects,” Pacheco said.
In addition to homicide charges, Martinez and Melgoza are facing the following charges: sale of a controlled substance to a minor; transportation for sale of a controlled substance; possession for sale of a controlled substance; conspiracy to commit a crime; and child abuse likely to cause great bodily injury or death.
Further, Villatoro said Haley opted to charge the defendants with the following aggravating factors, recognizing the unique circumstances present in this case: violence, cruelty, viciousness, or callousness; vulnerable victim; inducing others to participate in a crime; inducing a minor to participate in a crime; and planning, sophistication, and professionalism.
Martinez and Melgoza were being held at the Napa jail without bail Wednesday. They were scheduled to appear for an arraignment hearing at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday at Napa County Superior Court.
A third defendant in this case, Erika Garcia Chavez, 23, is being charged on suspicion of conspiracy to commit a crime and possession for sale of a controlled substance, Villatoro said.
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