‘Bright young woman’: Fentanyl crisis hits close to home after Ceres woman’s death
Bethany Borges of Ceres had an energetic, cheerful personality that served her well as a waitress and friend, her family said.
Borges worked for two and a half years at Harvest Moon restaurant in Modesto and liked to hug everyone, said Autumn Warthan, her aunt and a manager at the restaurant.
“She was a bright young woman who was finding herself,” Warthan said, adding her infectious smile and energy are missed at the downtown restaurant.
Borges, 24, became another victim of the fentanyl crisis last month. Stanislaus County authorities said last week that she died from fentanyl poisoning Aug. 17. Details of the incident have not been released.
The county district attorney has leveled a charge of second-degree murder against George Foster Keene, 27, of Ceres, alleging he furnished the illegal drug for sale.
Bethany was part of a close-knit family that’s been torn apart. Autumn said her own children and the daughters of her sister, Summer Warthan, were raised more like siblings than cousins.
Autumn has been speaking for Summer, who now has lost both of her daughters. Bethany’s sister, Destiny, died at Yosemite National Park in March 2017 when struck by a falling tree.
“She is devastated,” Autumn said of her sister. “She doesn’t have any children and she doesn’t have any grandchildren, either.”
Autumn said she is getting involved with campaigns to raise awareness about the fentanyl epidemic. She is planning an “empty chair” ceremony at the restaurant and another one at home. Fentanyl prevention campaigns hold the empty chair events at schools and other settings to emphasize the loss of a person who has died from fentanyl poisoning.
Stanislaus County recorded 128 overdose deaths from illegal fentanyl in 2022.
Autumn believes her niece did not know she was taking fentanyl last month. “She did not use drugs like that,” she said. “She did not use fentanyl, that is for damn sure.”
She added, “People think they are using something that is not fentanyl. They are partying. They are trying to feel good. They are not trying to die.”
Illegal fentanyl, which is 100 times more potent than morphine, may be mixed with any assortment of drugs sold illegally, including painkillers, Xanax and cocaine.
With the second-degree murder charge, prosecutors will try to show in court that Keene knew that selling fentanyl would result in the individual’s death. Keene, who’s in custody with bail set at $2 million, had an arraignment hearing in Stanislaus Superior Court on Sept. 19 and has a court date in December.
Keene’s mother and sister told The Modesto Bee last week the charges against George are not valid. They said George told them the incident happened at a home in Ceres where a small number of people were using alcohol and drugs.
“My son was no drug dealer. He was not a fentanyl dealer,” Georgette Keene said.
Deputy District Attorney Patrick Hogan, who is assigned to the case, said in an email Monday it’s still in early stages of prosecution. “I am reticent to discuss the specific evidence against Mr. Keene that led us to file murder charges in this case,” Hogan wrote.
He said he strongly believes that evidence presented in the preliminary hearing will support the charge of second-degree murder against the defendant.
This story was originally published September 26, 2023 at 12:00 PM.
