COOK COUNTY, IL – A 21-year-old man awaiting trial on electronic monitoring for felony gun and drug charges is now facing additional felonies following a joint operation conducted by Cook County Sheriff’s Police, High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) investigators, and Berwyn Police, Sheriff Thomas J. Dart announced today.
On Wednesday, March 27, investigators arrested Saul Hernandez, of the 7700 block of South Harlem Avenue in Bridgeview, after they recovered several illegal firearms, various narcotics, and a substantial amount of cash from inside his home.
The months-long investigation began last year after investigators received information that Hernandez was selling narcotics. Sheriff’s Police set up an undercover operation in which they purchased drugs from the defendant on multiple occasions, leading to the issuance of a search warrant for his residence.
During their search, investigators recovered a 12-gauge shotgun, two AK pistols, three semi-automatic handguns – including one that was stolen – one .38 caliber revolver, one extended magazine, 157 grams of suspect cocaine, 5,152 grams of cannabis, 19 grams of suspect MDMA (powdered ecstasy), 1,083 grams of THC oils, 757 grams of THC gummies, 770 grams of packaged psilocybin “magic mushroom” bars, and more than $17,600 cash. The recovered narcotics were sent to a forensic lab for testing and analysis.
Hernandez had been on electronic monitoring since January on charges of Aggravated Unlawful Use of a Weapon/No FOID/CCL and Manufacturing/Delivering Cannabis 2,000<5,000 grams.
The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office approved felony charges of seven counts of Delivery of a Controlled Substance-Cocaine and one count each of Armed Violence, Violation of Conditional Release/Firearm, Possession of a Controlled Substance with Intent to Deliver Cocaine, Possession of Cannabis with Intent to deliver, Possession of MDMA with Intent to Deliver, and Possession of Psilocybin with Intent to Deliver.
Hernandez appeared at the Maywood Courthouse on Friday, March 29, where a judge ordered him held in custody. His next scheduled court date is April 23 at the Bridgeview Courthouse.
The public is reminded that the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty by the government in a court of law.
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