Former Libertyville office employee charged with forgery, identity theft

A former employee at a Libertyville medical office has been jailed after he forged checks using a doctor's signature, authorities said today.

William L. Ward, 48, whose last known address was a Waukegan motel, also is suspected of using stolen Social Security numbers and other personal information to open credit accounts, police said.

Ward is charged with forgery, theft, and identity theft. He was being held Friday at Lake County jail on $100,000 bond.

Ward was arrested on a warrant Jan. 9 at Lake Forest High School, where his son attends classes.

Libertyville police began investigating Ward in September 2007 after he tried to use a forged $4,000 check to pay his rent, authorities said. The check had the signature of a doctor at Libertyville Medical Group, 716 S. Milwaukee Ave., but the doctor didn't sign the check, police said.

Three other checks and an undisclosed sum of money were discovered stolen at the office, too, police said. One of the checks later turned up in Tennessee, where Ward has family, police said.

Ward, who had started working at the office shortly before the thefts occurred, was fired after the crimes were discovered, police said.

Ward proved hard to find because he moved a lot, police said. Investigators eventually were able to track him down through the Lake Forest High School connection. School records listed the Ward family as being homeless, police said.

Ward's son was released to his mother after the arrest.

During the Libertyville police investigation, detectives learned Ward also was the suspect in an identity theft case being investigated by Naperville police. After his arrest, police searched Ward's motel room and found several credit cards in other people's names, including a Kay Jewelers card he used to buy jewelry, police said. He later pawned the jewelry for cash, police said.

Ward is scheduled to appear in Lake County circuit court on Feb. 6.