Jesus Montes claims federal investigators illegally questioned him after he invoked his rights during his arrest on drug charges in 2014 in Aurora, according to recently filed court documents.
Montes, 44, of Aurora, faces cocaine delivery, money laundering and several other charges in connection to the discovery of 37 pounds of cocaine and approximately $260,000 in cash in the garage of his home on Cambridge Avenue in March 2014.
Montes is referenced in at least nine different search warrants issued relating to drug sales, court records show. He remains held in Kane County Jail on $5 million bail.
Police didn’t begin looking into Montes until, while investigating a relative for money laundering, they received a tip he may be a large-scale cocaine dealer in Aurora.
Montes wants the judge overseeing his case to bar prosecutors from using statements he made to federal agents while in custody. Montes’ attorney states in the motion that Montes signed off on a document indicating he understood his rights during the morning of March 11, 2014, and told a Kane County sheriff’s deputy that he wanted an attorney – which ended the interview.
By early afternoon, two federal agents arrived and were told by the deputy that Montes had not asked for a lawyer, the motion states. Montes then talked with the investigators about the drugs and cash during an interview which was not recorded, his attorney states. Montes then signed another acknowledgment of his rights after being interrogated and wrote a one-paragraph statement in Spanish.
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“The agents reinitiated the interrogation in violation of Miranda,” the motion states. “Accordingly, any statements made by (Montes) were involuntary and must be suppressed.”
A June 11 hearing has been scheduled for arguments on the motion.
Dan Campana is a freelance reporter