TAVARES, Fla. — Suspended Osceola County Sheriff Marcos R. Lopez was able to post a $1 million bond and secure his release from the Lake County Jail Thursday.

Lopez had been locked up on racketeering charges tied to an alleged $21 million illegal gambling operation since his arrest on June 5.

What You Need To Know

  • Suspended Osceola County Sheriff Marcos Lopez posted a $1 million bond Thursday

  • Lopez is one of five named defendants in an alleged illegal gambling operation case stemming from Lake to Osceola counties

  • He had been in custody at the Lake County Jail since his arrest on June 5

One of the conditions of his current bond is that any money he uses cannot be affiliated with illegal activity or his alleged involvement in the gambling operation.

Orlando-based attorney Jonathan Rose said this requirement is typical in cases where the legitimacy of certain funds could be under question.

“(This) typically happens in drug cases, fraud cases, things like that, where they’re ordinarily someone who would have assets that may not have been legitimately gained,” Rose said. “The courts don’t want people to benefit in theory from being able to pay bond, get out of jail by virtue of the crime they supposedly committed.”

As it stands, conditions for Lopez’s release include posting bond, surrendering his passport and firearms and wearing a GPS monitor.

It’s a process that sometimes takes a while depending on how long it takes for those gathering the funds to get it together, but in the case of Lopez, the process seemed to drag out.

An Orlando defense attorney shares how exactly that process works.

“That person who posted the bond had to show or give some banks statements showing where the money came from, whether it is income tax, or whatever property they have and whatnot. They had to show that to the state. The state had to look at it, do their homework and tell the judge, ‘hey we agree with it,’ and now the judge signs the order and they can use those funds to post the bond,” Criminal Defense Attorney Jose Rivas said.

Of the five defendants named in the case, law enforcement still working to take co-defendant Ying Zhang into custody.

Other co-defendants Sharon Fedrick and Carol Cote, including Sheldon Wetherholt who turned himself in the other week, have posted their bond.

Lopez's estranged wife, who was arrested on a charge of conspiracy to use or invest proceeds from racketeering, remains in jail on a $400,000 bond.