Bail reduced in South Elgin pot-shipping case

Bail was reduced Thursday for a California man accused of shipping 82 pounds of marijuana to himself in South Elgin in December.

Kane County Judge Timothy Sheldon agreed to lower bail from $500,000 to $100,000 for Walter T. Kwiatek, who will have to post $10,000 to be released from Kane County jail.

Sheldon, though, denied a request to let Kwiatek return to California.

Defense attorney Richard Mottweiler argued Kwiatek was not a flight risk, and that he has no close relatives in the area. The 70-year-old married father of three has a steady work history, and is a Navy veteran, including serving in the Gulf of Tonkin battle in the Vietnam War, Mottweiler said.

The prosecution objected, saying Kwiatek possessed a plane ticket to return to California when he was arrested. The prosecutor also objected to the bond reduction, noting the street value of the drugs was $470,000.

Kwiatek faces felony charges of marijuana trafficking, manufacture or delivery of marijuana and possession of marijuana.

South Elgin Police acted on a tip Dec. 29 about a suspicious container shipped to a freight and delivery company in the 800 block of Commerce Drive. They seized the marijuana and an undisclosed amount of cash.

According to police, Kwiatek shipped the marijuana from Santa Rosa, Calif.

If found guilty of one of the more serious charges, Kwiatek could spend the next six to 30 years in prison.