Elgin police, FBI round up suspects in ongoing cocaine investigation
Seven men and two women were arrested Thursday in Elgin on cocaine charges, police said.
An investigation of more than a year involved Elgin police, the FBI and undercover drug buys, Elgin Police Chief Lisa Womack said.
Six of the seven charged were arrested between 7 a.m. and noon Thursday at their homes or jobs. One person, Heather Grimes, was arrested at Elgin Community College, police said.
Arrested were:
• Adali Soto, 49, of the 400 block of Raymond St., Elgin, charged with three counts of delivery of a controlled substance and one count of criminal drug conspiracy. Bond was set at $110,000.
• Victor M. Botti, 60, of the 300 block of Gifford St., Elgin, charged with two counts of delivery of a controlled substance. Bond was set at $25,000.
• Rose M. Marrero, 44, of the 1100 block of Ash Drive, Elgin, charged with one count of delivery of a controlled substance. Bond was set at $25,000.
• Charles J. Edgeston, 32, of South Gifford St., Elgin, charged with one count of delivery of a controlled substance. Bond was set at $5,000.
• Heather M. Grimes, 32, of St. Charles, charged with two counts of possession of a controlled substance. Bond was set at $1,500.
The following were each charged with criminal drug conspiracy:
• Jamie Mondragon, 44, of the 400 block of Oak St., Elgin. Bond set at $25,000.
• Angel L. Vega, 47, of the 400 block of Lowrie Court, Elgin. Bond set at $75,000.
• Timothy J. Tully, 51, of the 1000 block of Bluff City Blvd., Elgin. Bond set at $5,000.
• David Bognar, 37, of the 600 block of Lucille St., South Elgin. Bond set at $2,500.
"The FBI was brought in for the additional manpower because of the large scale of the operation," Elgin Deputy Police Chief Jeff Svoboda said.
Angel "Lefty" Vega was the only one of the nine taken to federal court in Chicago Thursday afternoon, where he was charged with conspiracy and possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, according to Ross Rice, special agent and spokesman for the Chicago FBI.
According to the complaint against Vega, the FBI monitored his cell phone beginning July 5, 2006, and a witness who knew him for more than 10 years supplied information to authorities.
In addition, the complaint stated Elgin police monitored a home on the 500 block of Ryerson Avenue where Vega allegedly stored cocaine in an apartment.
Vega was taken late Thursday to the Metropolitan Correction Center, where he will be housed until a hearing on Tuesday.
"Hopefully, it's the beginning of the decrease of drug activity in Elgin," said Elgin Lt. Cecil Smith, head of the gang and drug investigation units. "There will probably be more arrests from this investigation in the future."