Lake in the Hills man sentenced for providing fentanyl to overdose victim

A Lake in the Hills man was sentenced to 10 years in prison Monday after pleading guilty to delivering fentanyl to a man who died in a Crystal Lake motel room in 2021.

Wasfi Awwad, 29, of the 1100 block of View Point Drive, pleaded guilty to manufacturing/delivering between 1 and 15 grams of fentanyl/analog, and in exchange three counts of drug-induced homicide were dismissed, according to court documents.

He is required to serve at least 50% of his sentence and will receive credit for 547 days in jail since his arrest.

Additional charges from a separate case filed on March 22, 2021, also were dismissed Monday including four counts of unlawful possession of a controlled substance for "knowingly and unlawfully" possessing less than 15 grams each of cocaine, heroin, fentanyl and tramadol.

On Sept. 22, 2021, Daniel Iles, 30, of McHenry, was found dead in a room at the Super 8 Motel in Crystal Lake, where he and Awwad had been staying. Police found white powder in the room that "tested positive for the presence of cocaine," court documents said.

A search of Awwad's phone and interviews with him and others showed Awwad arranged to purchase Percocet pills and cocaine for himself and Iles the day before.

"Percocet pills not purchased from a pharmacy are often pressed with fentanyl," Assistant State's Attorney Matthew Brodersen wrote in a court filing.

Awwad and Iles were taken to Palatine to pick up the cocaine and pills, and Awwad "went inside" to purchase the cocaine and pills. The men were then taken back to the motel.

An autopsy determined Iles died from the "combined effects of cocaine and fentanyl."

While in McHenry County jail, Awwad was charged with two counts of aggravated battery alleging he struck another inmate on Nov. 29.

Those charges also were dismissed Monday as part of his negotiated plea.