Five years after he was charged for possessing a large amount of cocaine at his residence near Kaneland High School, a rural Maple Park man has pleaded guilty and is headed to prison.

Fernando Pilar-Lopez, 42, of the 2N block of Meredith Road, Maple Park, on Thursday, Aug. 20, 2015, agreed to a sentence of 19 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections in exchange for a guilty plea to unlawful possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, a Class X felony.

Circuit Judge James C. Hallock accepted the plea.

Prosecutors presented evidence that at about 2 a.m. Aug. 26, 2010, authorities served a search warrant at Pilar-Lopez’s rurall Maple Park residence. A search of the property revealed approximately 2,800 grams of cocaine with a street value of approximately $280,000. Further, authorities seized more than $1 million in cash, transaction ledgers, a money counter, documents that prove the Pilar-Lopez’s residency, banking information and money transfer slips that Pilar-Lopez admitted were related to the sale of illicit narcotics.

According to Illinois law, Pilar-Lopez is eligible for day-for-day credit. He receives credit for at least 1,821 days served in the Kane County jail, where he has been held since his arrest in lieu of $15 million bail.

Pilar-Lopez still faces charges relative to a federal indictment for heroin that was being shipped to him from Arizona.

“Mr. Pilar-Lopez was arrested and prosecuted because of a cooperative effort of the Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office, the Kane County Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Drug Enforce­ment Administration. Thanks to them for their work to remove this poison from our streets. This conviction puts a notable dent in Kane County’s illicit drug trade,” Kane County State’s Attorney Joe McMahon said.

The case was prosecuted by Kane County Assistant State’s Attorney Kelly M. Orland.

SOURCE: Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office press release