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Dublin police continue to investigate the death of a Fallon Middle School janitor and the illness befalling his fiancee, also a custodian at the school, when the engaged couple were found by police in severe medical distress in the library early in the morning after not returning home after their shift last week.
The decedent has been identified by the Alameda County Coroner’s Bureau at James Covington, 32, of Pittsburg. His fiancee and colleague, identified online as Shameka Wilbon, had been treated at a local hospital and was expected to make a full recovery.
Investigators are still unsure what caused both to be left ailing at Fallon on the morning of Dec. 23, as well as the source of the strange chemical-like odor responding officers reported smelling in the library. Officers did locate apparent fentanyl at the scene later that day, Capt. Nate Schmidt told the Weekly on Monday.
The pending results toxicology testing, which could take several weeks or more to process through external laboratories, will shed more light on exactly what took place, according to the captain.
“No matter how you look at it, this is very, very sad,” Schmidt said. “Our hearts go out to the family. Horrible.”
“Our deepest sympathies go out to the family and friends of our lost colleague and also to the students, staff and community of Fallon Middle School,” Dublin Unified School District Interim Superintendent Daniel Moirao said in a statement last week. “No matter how strong the Fallon Mustang family is, losing a family member at any time is tragic, but during this time of year, it is devastating.”
Police responded to the school on Kohnen Way around 7 a.m. Dec. 23 after a caller reported two people missing after saying they didn’t return home after their shift providing janitorial services at Fallon the day before, according to Schmidt. The pair had been scheduled to work a normal afternoon-into-evening shift at Fallon on Dec. 22.
Officers found a vehicle belonging to the missing couple at the back of the school, and began searching the school. A cellphone ping soon identified one victim’s cellphone as being in the library, according to Schmidt.
The officers located the missing man and woman in the library suffering from unknown medical issues. They also detected “an unknown chemical smell” in the room, Schmidt said.
Officers carried both ailing people outside to the school courtyard, but the man — later identified as Covington — succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Schmidt.
The woman was treated at the scene by Alameda County Fire Department and Faulk Ambulance Services and then transported to a local hospital for further treatment, the captain said. She was expected to make a full recovery.
ACFD’s hazardous material support unit was called in to investigate the chemical smell, but after an extensive search of the area, “no toxic chemicals were found, nothing that could cause the medical issues the victims were experiencing,” Schmidt said.
A subsequent school search led officers to discover a substance that tentatively tested positive for fentanyl at an unidentified location on campus, according to Schmidt.
The cause of the janitors’ medical issues has not been determined, nor has the cause of the man’s death, according to Schmidt. The case remains under investigation.
