A Sycamore man facing a minimum of 12 years in prison after police accused him of smuggling more than 300 pounds of marijuana through a McHenry County airport in 2014 rejected a plea deal Friday.
Prosecutors previously had offered a negotiated plea that would send Andrjez Hryniewicki to prison for 11 years – one year fewer than the minimum amount he faces if convicted at trial of marijuana trafficking.
McHenry County Assistant State’s Attorney Mary Scholl said the offer was no longer on the table as of Hryniewicki’s court appearance Friday. A jury trial has been scheduled for Oct. 15.
Hryniewicki, of the 27600 block of Hunters Lane, was charged in November 2014 with multiple drug felonies, including marijuana trafficking, after police said he transported about
$1.12 million worth of marijuana in a private airplane that came from California and landed at Galt Airport in Wonder Lake.
Officers claimed to have spoken with a witness who revealed plans to meet Hryniewicki at a Walmart in Belvidere and drive with him to Galt Airport to pick up the marijuana, according to a
Dec. 8 court filing.
On Nov. 19, 2014, police hid inside the hangar filled with nearly
320 pounds of marijuana and arrested the two men, court records show.
“Mr. Hryniewicki has maintained his innocence since his arrest and will exercise his right to trial,” defense attorney Matthew Amarin said Friday.
Hryniewicki is charged with possession with intent to deliver more than 5,000 grams of marijuana, marijuana trafficking, and possession of more than 5,000 grams of marijuana.
Hryniewicki is due back in court Sept. 21.
Reached by phone Friday, Amarin said Hryniewicki is unwilling to do any jail time to bring the case to a close.
The attorney previously tried to suppress certain statements prosecutors claim Hryniewicki made to police. Hryniewicki claimed in court filings that during the arrest, he was hit in the head and knocked unconscious.
Some of Hryniewicki’s injuries were documented by medical professionals. A jail nurse noted a blood-stained bandage on his head and a swollen and bruised ear. A Nov. 24, 2014, X-ray of his shoulder showed a torn joint that required surgery, according to medical records made public by Amarin.
Prosecutors have said Hryniewicki suffered only minor injuries that were caused by his refusal to cooperate with arresting officers.
At a January hearing, agents testified that they allowed a handcuffed Hryniewicki to smoke a cigarette, treated him for minor injuries and had a “cordial conversation” about family, high school wrestling and college football, court records show.
Hryniewicki shortly after confessed to bringing drugs over the Illinois border, stating he’d been hired as a smuggler by someone he knew only as “Steve,” according to a Dec. 8 filing.
Earlier this year, McHenry County Judge James Cowlin refused to suppress the statements, claiming Hryniewicki seemed “evasive” during testimony, and spoke as though he were making up his answers.
The judge described Hryniewicki in a written decision as a “savvy and clever individual” who was “looking for a way out of his predicament.”