David Chang

Delaware County, Pennsylvania, Man Charged With Selling Fentanyl-Laced Cocaine That Killed Man

A Delaware County man is charged with "drug delivery resulting in death" for allegedly selling fentanyl-laced cocaine that killed a man in February, the county District Attorney said Thursday.

Ricky Latimer, 32, of Glenolden, is also charged with involuntary manslaughter and 10 counts of delivery of a controlled substance for allegedly selling the laced cocaine to a 44-year-old Collingdale man found dead Feb. 22, according to the Delaware County District Attorney's office.

The man who died has not been identified.

Cellphone records allegedly indicate that Latimer delivered cocaine to the dead man's house at least 10 times between November 2018 and February this year, including on Feb. 21, the DA's office said. That day, Latimer allegedly sold the man $100 of the laced cocaine.

Latimer is the most recent in a string of arrests dating back a few years in which alleged dealers have been charged with a count of drug delivery resulting in death, a felony that could mean up to 40 years in prison.

NBC10 Investigators last year looked at a Montgomery County case in which a woman was charged for allegedly delivering drugs to a friend who died from an overdose.

"Fentanyl is a highly-addictive synthetic alternative to morphine and is used to treat pain in the terminally ill. The combination of fentanyl with cocaine exponentially increases the potency of both drugs," Delaware County District Attorney Katayoun Copeland said in a statement Thursday. "Dealers should know that when they sell these deadly drugs, they are facing a sentence of up to 20 to 40 years in prison."

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