An Aurora man was charged by Naperville police after he was found to have multiple illegal firearms, including a machine gun, a stolen vehicle, more than $47,000 in cash and 1.7 pounds of cocaine, officials said.
Convicted felon Dionte Neustadter, 46, of the 500 block of Grosvenor Lane, was initially stopped by Naperville officers on Jan. 15 after they spotted him in a 2024 Ford F-150 Raptor pickup truck reported stolen from Tennessee at a gas station on North Aurora Road, a news release from the DuPage County state’s attorney’s office and the Naperville Police Department said.
The driver, later identified as Neustadter, was pulled over on northbound Raymond Drive for a traffic offense but sped away when an officer approached the vehicle, the report said.
More than a month later, on Feb. 24, officers saw Neustadter standing outside a vehicle in the 1100 block of East Ogden Avenue, took him into custody and found 21 grams of cocaine in his possession, according to the release.
A search warrant executed at his home turned up $47,120 in cash, the stolen Ford Raptor key fob and an additional 753 grams of cocaine as well as the following:
- A 22 pistol modified with an automatic switch reported stolen out of Country Club Hills;
- A loaded Glock 17 pistol;
- A loaded Springfield Hellcat pistol;
- A loaded Smith & Wesson Shield pistol;
- A loaded, shortened AR-15 rifle ghost gun;
- A loaded Kimber Ultra Carry pistol reported stolen out of Whiteside County;
- A loaded Taurus handgun with defaced serial numbers;
- A loaded Springfield XD pistol.
Neustadter was charged with one count each of felony manufacture/delivery of a controlled substance-400 to 900 grams of cocaine, aggravated possession of a stolen motor vehicle and possession of a machine gun as well as with eight counts of unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon. He also faces a single count of misdemeanor fleeing and eluding a police officer.
“What started out as an investigation into a possible stolen vehicle rapidly expanded in scope and complexity, but our investigators didn’t miss a beat,” Police Chief Jason Arres said in the release. “They processed an extraordinary amount of evidence and information and put together a solid case against a convicted felon allegedly in possession of not only the stolen vehicle but also eight firearms and large amounts of illegal drugs.”
Neustadter has been ordered to be detained in the DuPage County jail pending trial. His next court appearance is scheduled for March 23.
