Lindenhurst Man Charged With Selling Drug to Officer
 

By Tony Gordon Daily Herald Legal Affairs Writer
Posted 3/3/2005

A Lindenhurst man was ordered held on $1.5 million bond Wednesday after being charged with selling cocaine with a loaded gun in his pocket.

Agents of the Lake County Metropolitan Enforcement Group arrested James K. Swan, 27, at a Libertyville hotel Tuesday evening.

Assistant State's Attorney Dan Shanes said Swan, of 2305 Honeysuckle Court, is also charged with three prior drug sales to MEG agents.

Shanes said Swan agreed to sell an undercover officer 2.2 pounds of cocaine for $21,500 and set up a meeting at the Holiday Inn Express, 77 Buckley Road.

About 5 p.m. Tuesday, the officer met with Swan at the hotel and Swan handed over a package containing tightly compressed powder.

He was taken into custody and police discovered a .22 caliber semiautomatic pistol in his pocket with a round loaded in the firing chamber.

Swan was also wearing SAP gloves, leather gloves with compartments of powdered lead covering the upper finger areas that act the same as brass knuckles.

An inspection of the package Swan handed police showed only the center of the 2.2-pound brick was actual cocaine, Shanes said.

However, the criminal case against Swan will deal with the entire weight of the package as a controlled substance because state law says "any substance containing cocaine" is cocaine.

"The contents of the package demonstrates rather clearly that he intended to rip the buyer off," Shanes said. "We believe the weapon and the gloves indicate he was willing to do so violently."

Police said Swan also sold one-quarter ounce of cocaine to MEG agents on Feb. 15 and Feb. 17 and sold them a full ounce on Feb. 22.

Swan served prison terms for cocaine possession convictions in 1998 and 2001, court documents show, and was placed on probation for the same crime in 1995.

Shanes said Swan is charged with armed violence and delivery of cocaine for the most recent sale.

Armed violence is punishable by a mandatory sentence of between 15 and 30 years in prison and delivery of cocaine has a mandatory sentence of between 15 and 60 years.

The Feb. 22 delivery is punishable by a sentence of between six and 30 years, while the Feb. 14 and Feb. 17 deliveries carry four- to 15-year penalties.

Associate Judge Victoria Martin scheduled a court appearance for Swan on March 10.