By Yonatan Omar –

Today at the United States District Court in Providence, Richard Delsanto, 28, of West Warwick pleaded guilty to distributing 40 grams or more of fentanyl and possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl.

In April and May 2021, an undercover Newport Police Department detective assigned to the Rhode Island DEA Drug Task Force engaged in a series of text messages with Delsanto to arrange for the purchase of 1,000 counterfeit OxyContin pills known to contain fentanyl.

On May 4, Delsanto delivered the pills in exchange for $5,000. Nine days later, the undercover detective arranged for a second delivery of pills from Delsanto. As Delsanto arrived at an agreed-upon meeting location, members of the Rhode Island DEA Drug Task Force stopped Delsanto’s vehicle and seized approximately 3,000 pills containing fentanyl. An additional 700 fentanyl pills were seized from Delsanto’s residence during a court-authorized search.

Delsanto is scheduled to be sentenced on May 16, 2022.