Man charged with fatal fentanyl‑driven drugging and rape of FIT student in Manhattan dorm

Federal prosecutors on Friday charged Moises Freire, 19, with distributing a controlled substance with intent to commit rape after he allegedly gave fentanyl disguised as cocaine to two Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) students in a Manhattan dorm on March 18, raping one of them while she was unconscious, and sending semi‑nude photographs of the victim to friends instead of calling 911.

The alleged assault has heightened awareness of opioid abuse in campus sexual violence. The victim, identified as Annabel Richter, a senior at FIT, never regained consciousness after the attack and died on March 21. Her mother, Flavia Rocha, described her as “a bright and beautiful young woman” whose death underscores the deadly intersection of drug distribution and sexual assault.

According to the unsealed indictment, Freire told the women he was providing cocaine sourced from Mexico, later describing fentanyl as “poison” in a text to a friend. After both women lost consciousness, he waited approximately 45 minutes before alerting campus security, during which time he allegedly texted photographs of the unconscious victims to friends, including an image of the woman he allegedly raped below the waist.

“It is truly hard to believe that the defendant, who seemed entirely coherent and sober at the time, didn’t know what was going on when he was having sex with the victim who was completely unconscious,” prosecutor Ariana Bloom said at an April hearing.

Campus security determined the women suffered acute fentanyl intoxication, administered Narcan, and called emergency services. While the roommate recovered and was released, Richter remained in a coma and later died. Freire is being held without bail pending a trial scheduled for March 2027 and is expected back in court on Oct. 28 for arraignment on upgraded charges that carry a minimum 20‑year sentence and a potential life term.

Co‑defendant Brian Peralta Cabrera, 18, faces a charge of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance resulting in death and serious bodily injury. A third suspect, Harry Rosales Pino, has already pleaded guilty to a similar narcotics charge and awaits sentencing. DEA Special Agent in Charge Christopher Roberts called the case “beyond disturbing,” and Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch described Freire’s actions as “truly unconscionable.”