Dec. 9—MORRISON — A Sterling man is charged with several weapon and drug violations accusing him of being armed while possessing cannabis and intending to deliver the drug.
Fernando H. Cid Jr., 23, was formally charged Monday with armed violence, unlawful possession of cannabis with intent to deliver, two counts of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, and one count each of unlawful possession of cannabis and unlawful possession of cannabis by a driver, according to Whiteside County court documents. All offenses are alleged to have occurred Dec. 6.
The armed violence charge, which is a Class X felony, specifically accuses Cid of having a Taurus G3X 9 mm handgun while committing the felony offense of unlawful possession of cannabis with intent to deliver. If convicted of that charge, Cid faces a mandatory sentence of up to 15 years in prison.
The intent to deliver cannabis charge is a Class 3 felony that accuses him of possessing at least 30 grams but no more than 500 grams of a substance containing cannabis with the intent to deliver.
One aggravated unlawful use of a weapon charge accuses him of having a handgun that was uncased, loaded and immediately accessible while possessing cannabis and for not having been issued a currently valid license under the Firearm Concealed Carry Act. The other accuses him of having the handgun while violating the Cannabis Control Act. The aggravated unlawful use of a weapon charges are Class 4 felonies.
The two remaining drug charges are misdemeanors.
Cid appeared Monday in Whiteside County Circuit Court, represented by Whiteside County Public Defender James Fagerman. Cid requested time to hire a private attorney and was granted pre-trial release, as prosecutors did not request that he be held in jail even though the nature of the charges are detainable offenses, according to court documents.
He is next scheduled to appear in court at 1 p.m. Feb. 3 for a preliminary hearing.