‘TA’ and ‘Delly Dell’ Plead Guilty to YGz Murders

In a brutal admission of street justice turned fatal, Terrance Williams, a/k/a “TA,” and Wendell Belle, a/k/a “Delly Dell,” pleaded guilty in Manhattan federal court to multiple acts of violence, including two murders committed as members of the violent “Young Gunnaz” street gang—commonly known as YGz. The pleas, entered before U.S. District Judge Valerie E. Caproni—Williams yesterday, Belle this morning—mark a grim reckoning for two men who once believed they’d escaped punishment for blood spilled in the South Bronx.

Williams admitted to the July 3, 2011, murder of 23-year-old Curtis Smith, gunning him down on Park Avenue near the Jackson Houses. He also confessed to the attempted murder of a rival gang member, opening fire in front of the Sweet Corner convenience store at Park Avenue and 158th Street. Though Williams had previously pled guilty under an August 31, 2016 plea agreement to racketeering conspiracy tied to drug crimes and violence, new evidence unearthed during an ongoing federal probe forced a withdrawal of that plea and a new, steeper deal—one now anchored in murder and attempted murder. He now faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Belle’s crimes are no less savage. He admitted to stomping Moises “Noah” Lora to death alongside other gang members in the courtyard of a residential complex at 700 Morris Avenue on April 16, 2012. In another brazen act, he opened fire on a rival gang member directly in front of the Bronx Criminal Courthouse on November 16, 2013, in a daylight attempted murder that underscored the gang’s brazen defiance of law and order. With today’s plea, Belle faces not only life behind bars but a mandatory minimum of 30 years in federal prison.

Both men were key enforcers in regional factions of the YGz, a South Bronx–based gang entrenched in drug sales, robbery, and violent turf wars. Williams led a faction based in Maria Lopez Plaza; Belle was a top figure in the River Park Towers crew. From at least 2005 through 2016, the YGz enriched itself through the sale of crack cocaine, heroin, and marijuana—all protected by threats, beatings, and murder. The gang’s operations spanned the 40th Precinct, a zone long plagued by cycles of retaliation and trauma.

Notably, Williams was initially arrested on state charges for Smith’s murder, but the Bronx District Attorney’s Office dismissed the case—letting him walk free for years. Federal prosecutors, working closely with NYPD and federal task forces, revived the case, weaving together old evidence with new testimony to secure the updated racketeering conspiracy charge. The reversal underscores how gaps in the justice system can be exploited—until federal jurisdiction clamps down.

“For far too long, members of the YGz gang and their rival gangs have terrorized communities in the Bronx by engaging in all manner of mayhem – including murder, attempted murder, and other racketeering activities,” said Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara. “Terrance Williams and Wendell Belle almost got away with murder, but thanks to the tireless efforts of law enforcement, they have both pled guilty to murders they committed as members of the YGz gang.” Sentencing for both defendants is scheduled later this year before Judge Caproni.