Opinion ID: 169730
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: July 2003 Conspiracy

Text: In July 2003, Officer Carlos Guzman, acting undercover, met with Adrian Tobie to discuss purchasing a one-half kilogram of crack cocaine. Tobie sought $12,500 for the crack cocaine; Guzman stated he could only afford $8,000. Tobie informed Guzman he could not lower the price without his source’s authorization. He said he would consult his source and try to obtain a lower price. Tobie and Guzman also discussed where the deal would take place. Tobie suggested a salvage yard owned by his source. Guzman refused to perform the transaction at the salvage yard and recommended the exchange take place at a neutral location. After meeting with Guzman, Tobie went to see his source, Haley, at the salvage yard to discuss the deal. Later, Tobie informed Guzman he had talked to his source and the price could not be lowered. Guzman agreed to purchase the crack cocaine for $12,500. The next morning, Tobie called Guzman and stated he was ready to conduct the deal at the salvage yard. Guzman refused to perform the transaction at the salvage yard and suggested he and Tobie meet again to discuss the deal’s terms. Later that same day, Tobie and Guzman met in a store parking lot. There, Guzman reiterated he would not conduct the deal at the salvage yard. Guzman also showed Tobie the cash to be used to purchase the drugs. Tobie told Guzman -2- he would call him if he and his source would agree to a location other than the salvage yard. Tobie immediately went to see Haley at the salvage yard and informed him the buyer had the money. Later that day, Haley told Tobie he was “ready” and to meet him at his North Rockford residence. (R. Vol. XIII at 235.) W hen Tobie arrived at the house, Haley was in the process of scraping crack cocaine from a Pyrex bowl. He then bagged the crack cocaine and placed it in a container. Because he did not trust Tobie with such a large amount of drugs, Haley called his brother, Ronald, and a friend, M ichael, to follow Tobie w ith the drugs. Tobie called Guzman and told him he and his source had agreed to perform the deal at a neutral location. Guzman told Tobie to meet him in the store parking lot. Officers in unmarked vehicles set up surveillance near the lot. Tobie went to the store parking lot, with Ronald and M ichael following in a black pickup truck. Tobie stopped behind the store and retrieved the drugs from Ronald. Tobie then drove to the parking lot; a few seconds later, Ronald and M ichael arrived. Ronald and M ichael backed their truck into a parking spot on the north side of the lot where they could observe Tobie. Concerned by the truck’s presence and fearing a possible robbery, the surveillance officers created a ruse to determine if the truck was linked to Tobie. They had officers in marked patrol vehicles perform a traffic stop on surveillance officer Chris Claramunt’s unmarked vehicle, a 1995 white Coupe D eV ille Cadillac, at a location where -3- Tobie, Ronald and M ichael would see it. They then had Guzman call Tobie and suggest they conduct the deal at a different location due to police being in the area. Tobie agreed and walked over to Ronald and M ichael to inform them of the change in location. Tobie then left the parking lot w ith Ronald and M ichael following. A marked police car pulled behind Tobie’s vehicle. Tobie accelerated and made an evasive turn before coming to a stop and unsuccessfully attempting to flee on foot. Once Tobie was secured, the officers searched his vehicle, discovering the container with the crack cocaine. Later testing revealed the crack cocaine weighed 501.7 grams. Another marked patrol unit followed and attempted to stop Ronald and M ichael’s vehicle. Ronald and M ichael did not stop immediately but rather proceeded down the street and ran a red light before pulling over. In M ichael’s wallet, officers discovered a piece of paper with “white Cadillac” and the license plate number of Officer Claramunt’s undercover vehicle on it. (R. Vol. X II at 167.)