Craigslist Pot Deal Ends in Drug Bust

Two men were arrested Nov. 22 during a midday drug deal they had arranged over Craigslist, according to .

Chris Cota, 35, of Oak Lawn, was charged with one count of delivery of marijuana and David R. Caldwell, 24, of Clarendon Hills, was cited for possession of marijuana.

Just before they were taken into custody, a police officer was watching a local gas station parking lot known for frequent drug activity. He saw a white Ford Mustang parked alongside the building at 87th Street and Central Avenue.

According to the report, Caldwell got out of his Chevy Blazer and walked to the Mustang. Caldwell briefly sat inside the car and got out about 30 seconds later. The police officer confronted Caldwell and asked him if he was buying drugs.

Caldwell took a deep breath and sighed out loud, then looked up in the air, the report said. The cop said Caldwell became visibly nervous and began trembling.

The officer said he caught a whiff of “raw cannabis” coming from Cota’s Mustang when Cota opened the car door. Police said they found Caldwell with a plastic baggie of pot. After police read him his rights, he agreed to talk about the incident.

Caldwell told officers he met Cota at the station to buy a bag of weed. The deal was arranged by e-mail and Caldwell showed the e-mail exchange to the officer, the report said.

Police said Caldwell told him he agreed to buy a quarter ounce of pot for his personal use from Cota for $120. The men arranged to meet in the gas station lot and one e-mail described the cars they were driving.

Cota and Caldwell were both taken to the Oak Lawn police station. Caldwell was read his rights again, and he agreed to talk more about the pot deal, police said.

According to the report, Caldwell said he found Cota on Craigslist by searching for “420,” a street term for marijuana.

Caldwell gave police permission to make hard copies of his emails to Cota from his cell phone. He declined to put his statement in writing, police said.

Cota also agreed to talk about the incident, according to the report. He told police he met Caldwell through Craigslist and arranged the pot deal over e-mail. He, too, agreed to let police search his cell phone for email, the report said.

Caldwell was cited with a village ordinance for possession of cannabis and was given a Dec. 20 court date at village hall.

Cota, who was charged with delivery of cannabis, has a Jan. 24 court date in Bridgeview.