First responders were called to the Shops at Riverside mall on March 15 after reports of multiple people displaying overdose symptoms.
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Emergency crews took life-saving measures and administered Narcan to the five women who were all found unresponsive in a lower-level parking lot.
It appears all five women, ages 29-41, were employees of one of the businesses at the mall and unknowingly ingested fentanyl. Officials say they thought it was cocaine and did not know it was laced.
Over the weekend, one of the five victims, 29-year-old Michelle Edoo, died from the overdose.
A GoFundMe page has now been set up by her colleagues to help her young daughter. According to the GoFundMe page, the victim worked at the Cheesecake Factory and was a single mother who was also a nursing student.
She was described as having a joyous personality and loved being the life of the party.
On Thursday, sources said two people were taken into custody in connection with the case, including one person who went to Paterson to buy the drugs and the dealer.
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Fentanyl poisoning: 3 fatal doses in same night
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