A Philadelphia man previously arrested and convicted in connection with the 2016 police action Operation Smackdown has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for dealing fentanyl-laced heroin (Tier 2) and possession of cocaine (Tier 1).
“Overdose fatalities are still out of control, and fentanyl remains a primary cause,” said Attorney General Kathy Jennings. “People across our state are dedicating their lives to helping our neighbors survive and recover from addiction; but all of that work is swimming upstream if we can’t stop the flood. It’s incumbent on us to stop the people who are flooding our communities with this poison.”
In December 2022, New Castle County police arrested Al-Ghaniyy Price in Bear after a concerned citizen called 911 just after 2 a.m. to report a vehicle running for over an hour in a residential area. Price was found to be in possession of 116 bags of heroin mixed with fentanyl, as well as approximately 10 grams of cocaine. Price subsequently posted bail, pending trial.
Six months later, while still awaiting trial, Price was again found to be dealing fentanyl; he was apprehended after fleeing law enforcement, crashing the vehicle he was driving, and attempting to flee on foot. Police found 103 bags of fentanyl and roughly 9 grams of cocaine in his possession.
Price was convicted at trial in January of this year for the December 2022 offenses; he later pleaded guilty to the June 2023 offenses. On June 7, he was sentenced to a total of 12 years in prison, followed by probation, for all of his pending offenses.
Fentanyl has been responsible for the vast majority — roughly 80% — of Delaware’s overdose deaths in recent years. Fatal overdoses killed 527 Delawareans in 2023.