Sheriff: Nearly 8,000 fentanyl-laced pills linked to Mundelein man

A Mundelein man faces multiple drug and gun charges after a three-month investigation that netted nearly 8,000 fentanyl-laced pills and four firearms, Lake County authorities said Sunday.

Oscar Pena, 22, of the 1000 block of Concord Circle, is in custody at the Lake County jail on $1.5 million bail on charges including armed violence, gun running, possession of a defaced firearm, unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, and unlawful possession of cocaine and fentanyl with intent to deliver.

Lake County sheriff's police said members of its special investigations group began investigating Pena in March after receiving information he was selling firearms and illegal drugs. During the investigation, undercover detectives acquired three firearms, 15 grams of cocaine and nearly 2,500 fentanyl laced pills, authorities said.

While executing a search warrant at Pena's home Friday, sheriff's police say they seized nearly 5,500 fentanyl-laced pills packaged for distribution, a firearm and a large quantity of ammunition.

"This drug trafficker had the ability to end countless lives with the fentanyl-laced pills he was trying to distribute throughout the region," Sheriff John D. Idleburg said in an announcement of the arrest. "Thanks to the strong partnerships included in our Special Investigations Group, we were able to utilize state and federal resources to investigate and arrest him."