A Mendota man accused of tossing a kilo of cocaine out his vehicle window after fleeing a traffic stop now is charged with trafficking. Ruemy Duarte Castenada will spend Christmas in custody.

Duarte Castenada, 50, was charged Tuesday with two counts of unlawful possession of a controlled substance, both Class X felonies, after he fled a midday traffic stop on Interstate 39 near Tonica.

Police retrieved a bundled kilogram of cocaine allegedly ejected from Duarte Castenada’s vehicle (sentencing range: 15 to 60 years) and then seized 5 ounces of cocaine (range: nine to 40 years) after a subsequent search warrant was executed at his residence.

Wednesday, La Salle County prosecutors filed a charge of controlled substance trafficking (30 to 60 years) and filed a motion to deny him pre-trial release.

At a brief hearing in La Salle County Circuit Court, Duarte Castenada signaled he intends to hire private counsel and reserved his right to argue for release at a hearing now set for Jan. 8.

If convicted of any of the Class X charges, Duarte Castenada would be required to serve not less than 75% of his prison time under the state Truth in Sentencing Act.

Duarte Castenada was taken into custody after he sped from a traffic stop on I-39 just south of Tonica.

“Agents attempted to catch up to the vehicle, at which time Duarte Castenada was observed throwing a “kilo” of purported cocaine from the window of the vehicle,” the Tri-County Drug Enforcement Narcotics Team said in a press release.

The pursuit continued until Duarte Castenada struck a semi, causing minor damage to the front passenger side of his vehicle and ultimately disabling it. Duarte Castenada then fled on foot into a wooded area near the Route 71 exit. Duarte Castenada was located and taken into custody without further incident, police said.

Following the arrest, a search warrant was executed at Duarte Castenada’s residence and the search yielded 144 grams (5 ounces) of purported cocaine.