Community service officer guilty of stealing from Elgin police
A former Elgin Police Department community service officer pleaded guilty Thursday to felony misconduct for taking $1,500 from the department in August 2010.
Sarai Villarreal, 35, of the 300 block of South Clifton Avenue, Elgin, will be on probation for 30 months and must perform 200 hours of community service.
Kane County Assistant State's Attorney Adam Katz said Villarreal also must repay the $1,500 to the department.
The top penalty for the misconduct charges was five years in prison, but probation was an option.
Until the 2010 charges, Villarreal did not have a criminal record and that was a factor in the plea agreement, in which Kane County authorities dropped felony theft charges that carried a maximum sentence of seven years.
Judge James Hallock accepted the plea from Villarreal, a nine-year city employee who resigned after a warrant was issued for her arrest in early September 2010.
Villarreal was accused of stealing money on three occasions - Aug. 7, 12 and 24, 2010 - when she worked the front desk at the department and accepted payments from the public. An internal audit system tipped off police.
Cesar Valdez, her attorney, could not immediately be reached for comment.
Elgin Police Cmdr. Glenn Theriault declined to comment on the outcome of the case and noted that no new security changes have been made for employees who handle money since Villarreal's arrest.
"We had sound practices in place, which is what allowed us to identify this issue right away," Theriault said.