After spending a night in the Lake County Jail and appearing before a judge for the first time Friday morning, suspended Osceola County Sheriff Marcos Lopez was granted $1 million bond total on his charges of racketeering and conspiracy to commit racketeering — $500,000 per charge.
The state asked for, and was granted, a stipulation that the court can inquire about the source of funds used to post bail.
He will be subject to GPS monitoring, must surrender his passport and firearms, and can have no contact with four named co-defendants, the hearing just said.
Lopez was arrested Thursday as the result of an investigation by state and federal agents, who claim he helped shield an illegal gambling enterprise from law enforcement and "engaged the (illegal) operation for campaign contributions and personal payments."
Lopez's defense asked for an "affordable" bond of $25,000 per offense, noting it was a white-collar, non-violent crime of money, and asked he be looked at "As a regular individual, not because he has a Sheriff's title to be treated different."
Prosecutors, who asked for a $600,000 bond per count, countered that the crime entailed an "Extreme breach of public trust and misuse of public office, using influence to facilitate the illegal enterprise and obstruct criminal investigation into this business."
The state also noted Lopez garnered nearly $700,000 from the illegal enterprise, with text messages and messaging app notes dating back to 2019, before he was elected Sheriff in November 2020.
Lopez's next scheduled court date is June 30. His defense asked for a status hearing next week at Friday's hearing.
