Cook County corrections officer charged with theft

A Cook County correctional officer has been charged with theft and placed on paid administrative leave, the Cook County Sheriff's Office said Wednesday.

Fernando Munoz, 48, of Cicero, was arrested following a year-long joint investigation by the sheriff's department and the FBI.

According to a news release on Wednesday, the sheriff's office learned a year ago that Munoz was talking about stolen property with a detainee in Division 11, where Munoz was assigned to work. On Oct. 31, 2013, Munoz met an associate of the detainee at a storage facility in Chicago, where Munoz was told the items in the locker were stolen, the investigation said.

Unknown to Munoz, the associate was cooperating with investigators. Two weeks later, Munoz returned to the storage facility and had asked for a wristwatch that had a value of approximately $1,200, the news release states. Investigators arrested Munoz as he left the facility.

Munoz has been a Cook County correctional officer for 12 years. He is scheduled to appear in bond court Wednesday at the George N. Leighton Criminal Courts Building.