Police arrested a Las Vegas woman Wednesday on a charge of murder following the death of her 2-year-old grandson from fentanyl toxicity last year, according to a Metropolitan Police Department arrest report.
Lashana Graham, 45, allegedly had multiple different drugs in her bedroom at a residence in Las Vegas where she was babysitting 2-year-old Da’Corrius Perine on Oct. 22, the report said.
Just after 3 a.m. the following day, Metro police and medical personnel were called to the residence, where they found a neighbor performing CPR on Perine, who was not responsive or breathing, according to the report.
The child was transported to University Medical Center, but lifesaving measures were unsuccessful, the report stated.
After talking with witnesses, investigators learned that Perine was being cared for while his mother, Delilah Perine, was away on a trip to Texas, according to the report.
Graham’s 18-year-old daughter, who also lived at the residence at the time, told police that Graham was a “drug addict” and that she had been known to “use fentanyl often,” the report stated.
Graham’s daughter, according to the report, had put Perine to bed around midnight on Oct. 22 and hadn’t noticed anything wrong with the child.
When interviewed by police, Graham said Perine had spent most of that day with her in her bedroom eating popcorn and watching TV, according to the report.
After Graham agreed to a search of her bedroom, police found “prescription drugs, foil and pipes,” along with other items. Police became suspicious that Perine may have ingested something at the home after an examination of his body at UMC showed now physical signs of distress, the report stated.
A more thorough search of the bedroom later turned up items with residue from multiple drugs including methamphetamine, heroin and fentanyl, according to the report.
A blood test that Graham took on Oct. 23 showed that she tested positive for heroin, methamphetamine and a host of other painkillers, according to the report. An autopsy of Perine’s body that same day showed that he died of fentanyl toxicity, the report said.
Days after the boy’s death, Graham told police that she typically bought fentanyl about three times per week in “powder or chunk form” and would smoke it using “foil.”
She admitted that she had “things” in her bedroom the night of Perine’s death that she “should not have had with her grandson visiting,” according to the report.
Graham was being held at the Clark County Detention Center, according to jail logs. Graham is scheduled for a status check hearing in Las Vegas Justice Court on Tuesday, according to court records.
Contact Bryan Horwath at bhorwath@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BryanHorwath on X.