After being imprisoned for the past three weeks on racketeering allegations, suspended Osceola County Sheriff Marcos Lopez was freed Thursday night after posting bond.
After a judge earlier in the day decided that the $100,000 he would deposit, or 10% of the amount, came from lawful sources and were not the result of illicit conduct, Lopez posted a $1 million bond. This was a requirement the court imposed upon his detention.
He was released from the Lake County Jail in Tavares at approximately 6:30 p.m. WESH 2 News captured a minute-long video of Lopez being hurried into a truck as reporters encircled him and yelled questions that he didn’t seem to respond to.
Following his startling arrest on June 5 for allegedly being involved in an illicit gambling operation that operated out of Osceola and Lake counties, Lopez was booked into the Lake County Jail. After Lopez was elected sheriff in 2020, prosecutors claim he made at least $600,000 and exploited his position to shield the ring from accountability.
Prosecutors claim that The Eclipse, an illegal casino in Kissimmee, was a component of a scam that made over $21.6 million. It operated out of a business facility on West Irlo Bronson Memorial Highway that has also housed a hookah bar and an Indian-American pizza restaurant.
Governor Ron DeSantis suspended Lopez while his case is pending, and Florida Highway Patrol’s Central Florida regional chief, Christopher Blackmon, was appointed as the temporary sheriff in his place.
Three other co-defendants, all of whom have bailed out of jail, were also arrested with him. Robin Severance-Lopez, his wife, is still in jail after being arrested on Monday.
The story is still evolving. For updates, return later.
