Illinois policeman widow asks for access to frozen bank accounts

[November 19, 2015]  By Brendan O'Brien
 
 (Reuters) - The widow of an Illinois policeman who staged his suicide asked a court to give her access to bank accounts frozen as authorities investigate possible criminal activity, her attorney said on Wednesday.

Fox Lake Police Lieutenant Charles Joseph Gliniewicz, 52, was found fatally wounded in a remote area of the northern Illinois community, about 55 miles (88 km) north of Chicago on Sept. 1.

Authorities said in early November that he staged his suicide as village officials began learning that he embezzled thousands of dollars from the local Explorer program, a youth law enforcement program he helped to run.

Gliniewicz's widow Melodie filed a motion in Lake County Circuit Court on Tuesday seeking to lift a freeze order placed on their bank accounts by authorities who are investigating the couple's finances and her involvement, according to court documents.

Melodie Gliniewicz's attorneys David Buckley and Andrew Kelleher said the couple routinely made payments back to the Explorer program's account, including a $32,000 payment in 2014 from her late husband's retirement account.

"Melodie has faith that the truth will come out in time," they said.

In an affidavit requesting the freeze order, investigators described a series of suspicious transactions and transfers over seven years by the couple involving several of their own bank accounts and accounts for the youth program.

Investigators found text and Facebook messages between Melodie and Charles that indicate they "exerted unauthorized control over funds belonging to the Fox Lake Explorer program," the affidavit said.

Thousands of dollars from the Explorer program account was used for personal expenses such as a family trip to Hawaii, restaurant meals, hormonal supplements, adult entertainment websites and personal loans, according to the affidavit.

Investigators also said in the affidavit that more than $29,000 in cash was withdrawn from the Explorer account between 2008 and 2015 and a $15,000 student loan payment was made from it in 2014.

Authorities have said that at least two people are under investigation, but no one has yet been charged.

(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Mary Wisniewski and Alan Crosby)

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