Drug cartel linked to 600 lb marijuana bust in Round Lake Park
Published on October 20, 2017
Following up on a marijuana arrest from Oct. 7, where a forged Mexican passport was also found, Round Lake Park authorities announced Monday that another arrest netted 600 pounds of marijuana that they say is linked to a cartel in Mexico.
“This is probably one of the biggest busts in the Round Lake area, and we’re linking it to a cartel operation in Guadalajara (Mexico),” said Police Chief George Filenko, adding that the estimated street value of the seized marijuana is $3 million.
According to Filenko, the suspected Guadalajara cartel deals mostly in cocaine and marijuana.
“And obviously, this group is serious,” he said, referring to an AR-15 rifle with advanced sighting and a loaded 30-round magazine that was also seized, along with three boxes of ammunition holding 60 rounds.
“So far, we’ve only charged two (suspects), but we are pursuing other leads and hooking up with federal agencies,” he said.
The start of the investigation was prompted by the Oct. 7 arrest of Jose Avila-Zumadio, 32, of Guadalajara, after police say he improperly passed a vehicle in front of the Round Lake Park police station on Route 134 in his vehicle and was seen by an officer leaving the parking lot.
Avila-Zumadio was taken into custody for having no valid driver’s license, and police found 3.25 pounds of marijuana, $1,900 in cash and a forged Mexican passport, police said, adding that the Mexican resident was charged with possession of a controlled substance, possession with intent to deliver and forgery.
That investigation led to another arrest Friday afternoon and the discovery of the huge cache of marijuana in a rented storage space in Round Lake Beach, according to a Round Lake Park police statement. The statement added that local officers were assisted by members of the Round Lake Beach Police Department, Lake County Sheriff’s Office K-9 Team and the Lake County States Attorney’s Office in executing simultaneous search warrants.
Maria T. Villa-Mauleon, 30, of the 400 block of Meadow Green Lane in Round Lake Beach, was being held Monday in lieu of $1 million bail on charges of unlawful possession of a controlled substance, unlawful possession with an intent to deliver, unlawful use of a weapon, no Firearm Owner’s Identification card, unlawful possession of ammunition and child endangerment, according to police.
“We had to bring in a truck and two SUVs to move the drugs,” Filenko said, adding that a K-9 on the scene immediately picked up a scent on the storage unit, but investigators struggled to open the overloaded unit.
“It took three officers to lift the door, because it was stacked to the ceiling,” he said “It was just jamming the door.”
Filenko added that, “This is an ongoing investigation. (We) can’t tell how long it’s been going on, but it might have been quite a long time.”