Harvard man on parole charged with possessing cocaine, gun

A 39-year-old Harvard man currently on parole for dealing drugs faces additional felony drug charges after police allegedly found cocaine and about $1,500 in his possession and his home, court records show.

Police stopped Cameron J. Ratcliff, of the 1300 block of 7th Street, on March 3 after he was “observed committing … what appeared to be a narcotics transaction” while under surveillance by the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Task Force, prosecutors said in a motion Friday.

During a search of his home, police found an additional 105 additional grams of cocaine with an estimated street value of $10,500, according to the prosecutors’ motion.

Ratcliff was charged with possession and possession with intent to deliver between 100 and 400 grams of cocaine, possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon, delivery of less than a gram of cocaine and possession of less than a gram of cocaine, according to the criminal complaint.

Ratcliff is accused of having a 9 mm handgun and several 9 mm bullets despite a 2004 case, in which he pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery and was sentenced to eight years in prison, court records show.

Ratcliff also pleaded guilty to delivery of cocaine in a 2015 case where he was sentenced to 10 years in prison and possession of cocaine in a 2012 case where he received three years, cases prosecutors cited in asking Ratcliff prove the source of any bail funds are unrelated to drug dealing.

Ratcliff currently is on parole for the 2015 case, according to the Illinois Department of Corrections.

Bond was set at $200,000 and Ratcliff would have to post $20,000 in order to secure his release. He remained in the McHenry County Jail as of Tuesday afternoon, according to the jail log.

McHenry County Assistant Public Defender Kim Messer, who is representing Ratcliff, requested that his bond be reduced, saying he is unable to secure the bail required, is not a danger to the community and is not a flight risk. A hearing on her motion was set for Wednesday.

The most serious charge Ratcliff faces – possession with intent to deliver between 100 and 400 grams of cocaine – is a Class X felony, which typically carry sentences of six to 30 years in prison and are not probational.