Man guilty of $75K Geneva identity theft arrested in Gurnee drug case
A man awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to stealing about $75,000 from a Geneva attorney has been charged with felony marijuana and hydrocodone charges out of Gurnee, according to police and court records.
Franco Morrone, 39, of Bartlett, is being held at the Kane County jail without bail after Judge Clint Hull revoked Morrone's bond May 10 at the request of prosecutors, according to Kane County court records
Morrone was free on bond after entering a cold, or blind, plea to identity theft of $10,000 to $100,000 earlier this year, and leaving it up to a judge to decide his sentence.
He was accused of using information as a personal assistant to the attorney to gain access to the lawyer's bank account from February 2016 to March 2017 to buy coins, jewelry and fine watches, according to a Geneva police report.
The attorney became suspicious after he inquired about online features for his bank account and learned online access had already been set up, according to Geneva police.
Morrone's sentencing, in which he faced a punishment ranging from probation to up to 15 years in prison, along with restitution, was supposed to be held last week but has been postponed until June 19, records show.
A message left with Morrone's defense attorney, Glenn Sowa, was not immediately returned.
Gurnee Police issued an arrest warrant for Morrone on April 25, 2019, and he turned himself in on May 6, Gurnee Deputy Police Chief Jesse Gonzalez said.
Morrone is charged with six felonies, including possession of 2,000 to 5,000 grams of marijuana with intent to deliver, possession of 50 to 100 grams of hydrocodone with intent to deliver and possession of 15 to 50 grams of amphetamine, Gonzalez said.
The most severe charge carries a top punishment of 15 years in prison.
Gonzalez said the charges stem from an investigation that began Sept. 13, 2018. Morrone is accused of possessing the drugs at a hotel on Sept. 13; he was not arrested that night, so authorities couldn't specify an amount of drugs seized or their street value.
"It was an ongoing investigation," said Gonzalez, who added it is now closed and police are not looking for other suspects in the Gurnee case.
Morrone is next due in court May 24 in Lake County for the Gurnee case.