Man accused in massive pot-growing ring in Naperville posts bail

A man accused of using rental homes in Bolingbrook and Naperville to run a multimillion-dollar marijuana operation was released on $50,000 bail Monday after a judge ruled the money came from legitimate sources.

Chang Chen, 40, presented DuPage County Judge George Bakalis with a pair of cashier's checks for $41,000 and $9,000, along with affidavits signed by two brothers who said they supplied the funds. Chen, a citizen of China, also surrendered his passport.

Chen was one of three men charged in August after authorities discovered 7,592 marijuana plants worth $10 million in three rented homes in Bolingbrook and Naperville.

As a condition of his release from the county jail on bond, Chen had to provide the source of any bail money and show that it did not come from any illegal activities. He also was ordered to relinquish his passport.

Prosecutors said Chen cultivated marijuana at all three homes, though one on the 2500 block of Whitehall Lane in Naperville, which he rented for about two years, served as the main location. The scheme was uncovered when a neighbor called Naperville police to report a possible robbery after seeing U-Hauls going in and out of the garage, police said.

Defense attorney Nahaniel Hsieh said Chen has eight siblings, two of whom contributed to put up his bail.

But Hsieh said his client likely will be getting new legal counsel soon. “I haven't been paid so far,” he told the judge.

Chen, of the 2200 block of South Wentworth Avenue, Chicago, is charged with unlawful production of cannabis, a felony punishable by four to 15 years in prison.

His bond was initially set at $1 million, but the amount was later cut in half. He returns to court Nov. 29.