Yuba County Men Indicted on Drug Trafficking Charges

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a 12-count indictment today against Darrell Anderson, 50, and Ricky Phienemanh, 35, both of Olivehurst, charging them with conspiracy to distribute heroin and methamphetamine, distribution of methamphetamine, distribution of heroin, and possession with intent to distribute heroin, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, throughout 2020, Anderson sold heroin to an undercover officer. In 2022, Anderson conspired with Phienemanh and Sanit Khamthong, 41, of Marysville to distribute, and did in fact distribute, methamphetamine and heroin. During the investigation, law enforcement learned that Phienemanh and Khamthong were supplying Anderson with large amounts of methamphetamine and heroin. Khamthong was separately indicted in September 2022 and is in federal custody.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Yuba County Sheriff’s Office, the Sutter County Sheriff’s Office, the Yuba City Police Department, the Marysville Police Department, and the California Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alstyn Bennett is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Anderson and Phienemanh face a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison and a $10 million fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.