AUSTIN (KXAN) – On the night of April 12, Carlos Contreras hugged his daughter, Sienna Rae, kissed her on the forehead and said goodnight.
“I told her I would see her in the morning,” Carlos said.
They planned to go on a road trip at noon the next day. As it grew later in the morning and Sienna still wasn’t awake, Carlos went to check on her. He saw her dog whimpering in her closet.
“I could just tell that my baby wasn’t wasn’t there anymore,” he said.
Sienna Rae died a little more than two months before her 18th birthday.
The Austin Police Department accused Xavier Buentello of selling fentanyl to Sienna Rae, which officers said caused her death. APD charged Buentrllo with first-degree murder.
The Contreras family said the charge is bittersweet.
“Naturally, if I’m going to get some news about my sister, I want it to be that she’s okay,” said Isak Contreras, Sienna Rae’s brother. “Having the person responsible face some kind of justice, I guess that’s as good as it can get at the moment. I guess [it’s] bittersweet.”
Carlos and Isak described Sienna Rae as creative, funny, and loyal. They said she had many friends who loved her dearly.
“She was hilarious. She was really goofy and outspoken,” Isak said. “She’s my favorite person. The moment she was born, she was that person for me.”
Carlos described his daughter dying of a fentanyl overdose as his worst fears come true. He said he consistently showed her news articles that detailed overdose deaths to admonish her of the risks of experimenting with drugs while fentanyl is widespread.
“I was terrified of the whole fentanyl epidemic,” Carlos said. “All my worries and paranoia and warnings, and I couldn’t – I didn’t make a difference in her life.”
Carlos said his family is heartbroken. He hopes by sharing Sienna Rae’s story, someone might learn from it.
“I’m hoping it reaches somebody,” he said. “I hope somebody learns from it. It’s not a game. When they say one pill can kill literally, they mean it.”