Elk Grove Man Sentenced to 9 Years in Prison for Trafficking Heroin and Fentanyl (DOJ)

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Delanious Ward, 57, of Elk Grove, was sentenced today to nine years in prison for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin and fentanyl, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.

According to court documents, Ward is among seven defendants arrested in 2024 and charged with trafficking narcotics as part of a multi-agency operation targeting cocaine, heroin, and fentanyl traffickers Ward was a manager or supervisor of a vast drug network that stretched to New Orleans, Louisiana. During 60 days of wiretaps, Ward was intercepted trafficking fentanyl, cocaine, and heroin, and was found in possession of cocaine and fentanyl upon his arrest. Ward pleaded guilty on Dec. 19, 2024.

The Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the California Department of Justice, the California Highway Patrol, the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office, and the Sacramento Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Cameron L. Desmond is prosecuting the case.

Below is the status of Ward's co-defendants:

On Jan. 16, 2025, Albert Gurley, 51, of Sacramento, was sentenced to seven years in prison for possession with intent to distribute heroin,.

On March 27, 2025, Manuel Greenhalgh, 33, of Sacramento, was sentenced to three years and 10 months in prison for possession with intent to distribute heroin.

On May 15, 2025, Kevin Yancy, 57, of New Orleans, Louisiana, was sentenced to two years and 11 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin.

On Sept. 19, 2024, Agustin Gonzalez, 63, of Manteca, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin and fentanyl. He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 14, 2026.

On Oct. 31, 2024, Craig Hunter, 51, of Sacramento, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine. He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 7, 2026.

On Oct. 31, 2024, David Byrd, 53, of Sacramento, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl. He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 4, 2026.

This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States.