An alleged Mexican drug cartel carrier has been sentenced to 17 years in prison after she and her son were found with 120,000 pills of fentanyl, worth approximately $1.8 million, in Marengo.
Gloria Gastelum, 55, of Tucson, Arizona, was charged in August 2024 with manufacturing or delivery of 900+ grams of fentanyl, a Class X felony, and unlawful possession of 200+ grams of a substance containing fentanyl, a Class 1 felony.
Court documents said Gastelum was found with a large quantity of fentanyl around 7:30 p.m. on August 7, 2024, in McHenry County.
Prosecutors said the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Task Force were notified of drug activities involving a drug trafficking organization operating in Mexico and Arizona in May 2024.
A search warrant was obtained after a white Toyota Rav4 rental car, occupied by Gastelum and her son — German Vargas, 34, of Tucson, Arizona — was stopped at the McDonald’s, 200 West Grant Highway in Marengo.
The stop came following an arrangement made by an undercover detective to have Gastelum deliver a shipment of fentanyl pills from Arizona, prosecutors said.
Gastelum and Vargas were accused of being part of a drug cartel in Sonora, Mexico, while living in Arizona in close proximity to the U.S.-Mexico border.
Undercover agents made phone contact with Gastelum while she was in Des Moines, Iowa, on her way to McHenry County.
A search of the car following a search warrant resulted in 120,000 pills being recovered, according to a DEA report.
The fake blue pills were packed in 12 separate bundles of 10,000 each, weighing approximately 12 kilograms. They were marked as oxycodone but lab-tested positive for fentanyl.
The drugs were concealed in various areas in the vehicle, prosecutors said, adding that the combined street value was approximately $1.8 million if they were to be sold at $15 per pill.
Police in the United States have said that fentanyl can be deadly even in small doses and the DEA has said one kilogram of fentanyl has the potential to “kill 500,000 people.”
Vargas was also charged in August 2024 with the same charges as his mother — manufacturing or delivery of 900+ grams of fentanyl, a Class X felony, and unlawful possession of 200+ grams of a substance containing fentanyl, a Class 1 felony.
Vargas and Gastelum have been held in the McHenry County Jail since their arrests.
Court records show Vargas entered into a negotiated plea deal with the McHenry County State’s Attorney’s Office last week.
He pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful possession of 200+ grams of a substance containing fentanyl, a Class 1 felony, in exchange for his more serious charge being dismissed.
McHenry County Judge Mark Gerhardt accepted the plea and sentenced Vargas to 13 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections pursuant to the agreement.
Gastelum reached a negotiated plea deal with the state’s attorney’s office this week.
She pleaded guilty to an amended count of manufacturing or delivery of 15-100 grams of fentanyl, a Class X felony, in exchange for her other charges being dismissed.
Gerhardt accepted the plea on Thursday and sentenced Gastelum to 17 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections pursuant to the agreement.