Batavia Woman Sentenced in $2.7 Million Kane Co. Marijuana Bust

A 59-year-old Batavia woman became one of the last people sentenced in a $2.7 million Kane County marijuana bust that involved six different police agencies who ended up recovering 598 pounds of pot, according to the Daily Herald.

Mary Nunez, of the 2700 block of Sperry Court, entered a guilty plea to a charge of possession of 2,000 to 5,000 grams of marijuana and has been sentenced to three years in prison, the Daily Herald reports.

Meanwhile, Matthew A. Westerlin, 30, formerly of Elburn and who now lives in Earville, Ill., was sentenced to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to a charge of possession of more than 5,000 grams of cannabis last week, according to the Daily Herald.

Westerlin and Nunez were among five charged in the marijuana trafficking investigation that spanned three months in 2012.

Police received information in September 2012 of a cannabis trafficking organization based out of Kane and McHenry counties that was responsible for transporting hundreds of pounds of pot from Arizona to Illinois.

Agents from the agencies conducted surveillance on the suspects and obtained additional information regarding the operation. They were able to determine the schedule of the group and learned of the next shipment of cannabis.

Over several days in November, agents conducted surveillance on the group of suspects as they traveled from Arizona back to Illinois. Agents followed the suspects who were traveling in four separate vehicles and on November 13 at about 8 p.m. conducted simultaneous traffic stops on the vehicles in Kane County.

A Batavia man and woman were among a group of five charged with cannabis trafficking after a three-month investigation, police said.

The investigation, which involved six different agencies, ended in a seizure of 598 pounds of cannabis from two vehicles. Agents also took three firearms from the Batavia man and woman’s residence, located on the 2700 block of Sperry Court.

In September law enforcement personnel received information of a cannabis trafficking organization based out of Kane and McHenry counties. The organization was allegedly responsible for transporting hundreds of pounds of cannabis from Arizona to Illinois.

Agents from the agencies conducted surveillance on the suspects and obtained additional information regarding the operation. They were able to determine the schedule of the group and learned of the next shipment of cannabis.

Over several days in November, agents conducted surveillance on the group of suspects as they traveled from Arizona back to Illinois. Agents followed the suspects who were traveling in four separate vehicles and on November 13 at about 8 p.m. conducted simultaneous traffic stops on the vehicles in Kane County.

A K-9 sniff was conducted on the vehicles and the K-9 alerted on the Camry and the Lexus. A subsequent search of the vehicles resulted in the seizure of about 598 pounds of cannabis combined from both vehicles.

In addition to the evidence seized from the traffics stops, agents conducted searches of two homes associated with the suspects: the 300 block of Nebraska Street in Elburn and the 2700 block of Sperry Court in Batavia. Agents seized three firearms from the residence on Sperry Court.

The Daily Herald reports Westerlin’s wife, Crystal, 31, entered a guilty plea and was sentenced to three years in prison; Dean Dzulba, 56, of Darien, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to four years in prison; and Richard Ecklund, 50, of the 2700 block of Sperry Court in Batavia, entered a guilty plea and will be sentenced on Oct. 28.