Schaumburg worker denies money laundering

A Cicero man pleaded not guilty Friday to charges he used his job at a Schaumburg warehouse to smuggle nearly $1 million in drug money.

Luis Diaz, 40, of the 5000 block of West 30th Place, was arraigned in front of Cook County Judge John J. Fleming. He faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted.

Diaz was charged with money laundering after an Illinois State Police probe into suspected narcotics trafficking led to a warehouse on the 200 block of Hammond Drive in Schaumburg, the state's attorney's office said.

On April 5, a surveillance team saw Diaz leave the building on a day it was normally closed and subsequently received consent to search premises, prosecutors said. The search uncovered contraband in a flatbed semitrailer at a loading dock. Police also found $991,765 in several hidden compartments on the truck, authorities said.

Diaz is being held on $100,000 bond and is due back in court June 4.

The Cook County state's attorney's office said it plans to take civil action to seize the funds and re-appropriate them for law enforcement.