Man takes plea deal in huge drug bust in McHenry County; forfeits cash, cars, jewelry, bank accounts

Matthew Lilla pleaded guilty Friday to felony counts of attempted marijuana trafficking and money laundering in a drug-dealing scheme that McHenry County authorities said was possibly the largest in its history.

But before Lilla entered his plea in a McHenry County courtroom Friday, he agreed to withdraw his claims to property seized by the state during the investigation, clearing the way for the state to keep it.

That property includes cash, bank accounts, two Ford transit vans, a 2018 Bobcat skid-steer loader, a Dodge pickup truck, a 2018 Mercedes-Benz, a 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, jewelry and tools. The state also is seeking two homes, one in Huntley and one in Schiller Park, but is working with the mortgage holder on those forfeiture claims.

The total property seized, according to the McHenry County State’s Attorney’s Office, totaled an estimated $1 million. One bank account alone held $120,000 in cash, according to court documents.

Lilla, 38, of Chicago, was given four years in the Illinois Department of Corrections in a negotiated plea approved Friday by Judge Mark Gerhardt. In exchange for the plea, the state dropped seven other charges against Lilla.

Lilla was given credit for 10 days served in the McHenry County Jail after his arrest and the 281 days he was out on electronic home monitoring. He also was ordered to pay thousands of dollars in fees, fines and legal costs.

Lilla was the last of four men to enter a plea in a case the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office called the largest drug bust in McHenry County history when the men were arrested and charged in October 2022.

According to court records, the sheriff’s office had received anonymous complaints in 2020 about drug activity at a Crystal Lake home. During surveillance of that home, officers saw a white transit van with Oregon plates that would arrive, stay for several days and then leave for several days, authorities said. The driver of that van was stopped and arrested in Nebraska in spring 2021, according to the documents; he was carrying $259,853 in cash upon his arrest.

A warrant search of that man’s phone showed communication with Lilla, who directed the courier to drop off and pick up drugs at locations throughout the U.S., authorities said.

The forfeiture complaint also outlined Lilla’s money-laundering schemes, in which he directed the courier to form businesses and invoices to create a paper trail to legitimatize the drug money.

Also charged in the case were Michael Krawczyk, 34, of Huntley; Mark R. Bennett Jr., 33, of Lake in the Hills; and Michael Ferrante, 34, of Woodstock. All three also took plea deals, with Ferrante getting two years of probation and 180 days in the county jail, and Bennett and Krawczyk both receiving probation.

Lilla was allowed to keep one item the state had included in the forfeiture: an 18-karat gold Presidential Rolex watch.