Aurora man who blackmailed woman for sex in 2015 now arrested on gun, drug charges
A 22-year-old Aurora man who was prohibited from possessing a gun because of a previous felony conviction for blackmailing a woman into sex now faces weapons charges after a traffic stop.
Maxwell T. Melgar, of the 800 block of Lafayette Street, also was on probation for a methamphetamine possession case Thursday night when he was caught with a loaded 9 mm handgun in his car and 15 grams of Alprazolam, otherwise known as Xanax, after a traffic stop in Aurora, according to Kane County court records.
Aurora police stopped Melgar for speeding 35 mph in a 25 mph zone at 6:38 p.m. as he drove south on River Street near Gale Street, according to court records.
Melgar also was cited for improper use of registration and being an unlicensed driver. The arrest prompted a search of his 2000 silver Honda, which turned up the loaded gun and pills, according to court records.
He was charged with aggravated unlawful use of a weapon in a vehicle by a person with a previous felony conviction, possession of a controlled substance and possession of a firearm within 1,000 feet of a park, court records show.
Melgar served 280 days in the Kane County jail after his arrest in early 2015 on charges he used the threat of nude photos to blackmail a woman he knew into having sex with him.
Melgar, who was 18 at the time, eventually pleaded guilty to felony intimidation and was sentenced to two years of sex offender probation.
He also was charged in juvenile court with blackmailing another woman with nude photos; the result of that case was not available.
Melgar completed his probation, but was arrested in July 2018 in Aurora on felony methamphetamine charges after a traffic stop.
He pleaded guilty in March to possession of a controlled substance, a felony, and was sentenced to a year of probation.
Melgar is being held at the Kane County jail on $80,000 bail, meaning he must post $8,000 in order to be released while the case is pending.
He is next due in court Friday and faces a sentence ranging from probation to up to seven years in prison on the most severe charge of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, records show.
Melgar also could be resentenced to jail or up to three years in prison if a judge determines Melgar violated his probation in the 2018 drug case.