Federal officials recently announced charges against more than 50 people this week, with arrests in Chicago, north to Wisconsin and far south to Mexico.
The arrests were part of “Operation Full Circle,” a federal and state investigation into heroin and fentanyl trafficking on Chicago’s West Side.
The Tribune reported that a 60-year-old man who allegedly runs a Mexican drug trafficking operation, as well as a 47-year-old Racine, Wisconsin man who allegedly sells wholesale fentanyl to Chicago area customers.
Two men who are allegedly participants in the Mexican drug-dealing operation were also taken into custody: a 56-year-old Chicago man and a 45-year-old Lynwood man. The Lynnwood man allegedly bought 880 grams of fentanyl during a recent meeting with the Racine man, according to prosecutors. The meeting was apparently surveilled by agents who had secured court permission to “wiretap certain telephones,” the Tribune reported.
Law enforcement also said they watched as a 43-year-old Chicago man attempted to deliver fentanyl and heroin in a parking lot near the University of Illinois at Chicago campus. When officers tried to pull the man’s vehicle over, he drove off, allegedly throwing drugs out of the vehicle window.
However, he was soon stopped and the packages recovered, police claimed.
The enforcement operation announced by federal authorities resulted in multiple seizures, including: 2 kilograms of heroin, 1 kilogram of fentanyl, 300 pounds of marijuana, 17 firearms and $8,000.
Those facing federal or state drug trafficking charges know that convictions can mean years of incarceration and substantial fines. Before speaking with a prosecutor, talk to a criminal defense attorney dedicated to the protection of your freedom and rights at every step of the legal process.
