Update: $75,000 Cash Bond for Drug Lab Suspect

The Racine man police say ran a drug lab in the upstairs apartment of his uncle's house is being held in the Racine County Jail on a $75,000 cash bond.

According to a written release from the Racine Police Department, Timothy Gutierrez, 39, of Racine, was taken into custody Tuesday for his suspected involvement in the clandestine ecstasy lab found in an upstairs apartment of his uncle's house.

Gutierrez was charged in Racine County Circuit Court Wednesday with one count each of felony possession with intent to deliver THC and felony conspiracy to manufacture designer drugs; two counts of felony first degree recklessly endangering safety; and four counts of misdemeanor bail jumping.

If convicted, he faces up to 53 years in prison and/or up to $140,000 in fines.

Gutierrez's defense attorney, Patrick Cafferty, told the court that prosecutors have nothing to tie him to the drug lab so the charges should be dismissed, according to a story in The Journal Times.

“Without establishing that he was in control of that residence and he placed the items there, (prosecutors can’t) establish probable cause,” Cafferty is quoted as saying.

But, police spoke with the homeowner - Gutierrez's uncle - and they say he told them the defendant had full access to the home, including the second floor. More, another witness said they frequently saw Gutierrez on the second floor of the house, the complaint reads.

On Friday around 4 p.m., Racine firefighters were called to a home at 421 Parkview Drive for reports of a structure fire. When they went inside to extinguish the flames they discovered a suspected drug lab.

Investigators from the state Department of Justice's Clandestine Laboratory Enforcement and Response (CLEAR) team determined the scene was home to a complex ecstasy lab.

According to the criminal complaint, officers removed duffels bags filled with over 3,500 grams of marijuana, 86 samples of liquids and tested a substance scraped off the bottom of a beaker that tested positive for MDMA, which is a designer drug.

The entire second floor of the house was used for the drug lab, the complaint reads:

Officers advised that there was a full scale drug lab that covered the entire second floor of the apartment. They stated that it ran from the back wall to the front wall and that there was evidence of a fire recently in one of the rooms. 

The investigation remains open. Anyone with any information about this case can leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at (262) 636-9330, or by texting RACS plus the message to CRIMES (274637) and referring to Tipsoft I.D. #TIP417 with your text message.